Close to 100 activists braved the cold and made their way to the warm and bright conference space at St. James Church for the Activist Afternoons launch party on January 21. “We’re back!” said one participant. “What a wonderful space for activism!” said another.
After a brief welcome, reps from each of the eight partner organizations jumped up to introduce their campaigns and describe the specific work that activists would do each Sunday. The range of issue areas was inspiring, from voter turnout to climate action to prison abolition. It was clear that activists will have a healthy array of options to choose from each Afternoon.
An interactive activity gave participants an opportunity to meet each other and describe their personal history of advocacy and goals for the year. The crowd cheered when they heard that a ten year-old girl in attendance has been organizing at her schools since she was five. We hope Activist Afternoons can be a place for other young people to try out political action for the first time.
Onward to the next Afternoon on February 4! We’ll be offering phone banking with Progressive Mass for progressive state legislation, postcards for voter registration in Pennsylvania, and more. Sign up here: https://www.mobilize.us/activist-afternoons/event/595320/