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2nd Annual SOTMYD!
“To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
In 2011 the Manhattan Young Democrats set out to meet several goals:
- Get Marriage Equality passed in New York State (check!)
- Create a robust Women’s Issues Committee (check!)
- Run even more young people for Democratic County Committee and re-establish the County Youth Committee (check!)
- Pass a Living Wage bill (still working on it, but closer than ever!)
I think it’s safe to say we had a pretty good 2011. We built up our membership and we raised some serious cash. We got nearly 100 young people elected to positions within the Democratic Party, and we once again came home from the national Young Democrats of America convention with the title “Chapter of the Year!”
I am so proud of everything we accomplished last year, but I know that 2012 will be even better. This is the year all of our hard work pays off. This is the year we reach out to every person who ever attended a happy hour event, or community service activity or holiday party, and get them engaged. This is the year we get them plugged into local campaigns, into their local Democratic clubs and their community boards. This is the year we ORGANIZE. And not just in midtown and downtown Manhattan, but in Harlem and Inwood and Washington Heights.
This is the year we show everyone that 2008 wasn’t a fluke; that young people still care about their country and still want to work to make it better. This is the year we prove that young really can get it done.
But don’t worry, we’re still going to have fun! The truth is, collecting signatures and making phone calls is a hell of a lot easier if you’re doing it with friends and you can go out and grab a beer afterwards. So join us tonight as we have a few drinks and watch President Obama deliver his State of the Union speech.
Tonight, we celebrate. Tomorrow, we get to work.
Join the Team!
Thank you to everyone who attended our general meeting Tuesday night. I think it’s safe to say that was probably the largest turnout we’ve ever had! I’m so excited to be taking the helm of such an amazing organization; I know we’re going to do great things this year.
But to do great things we need a great team, and that’s where you come in. Every year the Officers appoint Directors who sit on the executive board and help run various aspects of the group. You can download the Director position descriptions and application HERE.
Please note: we may not fill all of the positions right away, since we’re still in the process of developing our plans for 2012, but we encourage you to apply to any position you might be interested in. We will be making appointments by the end of the month.
What is SOPA/PIPA?
The video above discusses the Senate version of the House’s Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). In the Senate the bill is called the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). SOPA has gotten more attention than PIPA because it was moving faster in the legislative process. But PIPA is just as dangerous, and now it is moving faster.
PIPA would give the government new powers to block Americans’ access websites that corporations don’t like. The bill lets corporations and the US government censor entire websites and cut sites off from advertising, payments and donations.
Read more and contact your representative by clicking here
2012 Officer Applications
The apps are IN!
Officer positions are President, Executive Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer (learn exactly what the requirements are in Article III of the MYD Constitution, HERE).
Elections will take place on January 17th at 7PM. The location will be RWDSU – 30 East 29th St., 5th Floor Conference Room. Make sure to pay your dues online in advance or bring a $20 bill — you must be a 2012 member to vote.
President
Kim Moscaritolo
Vice President
Prince Agarwal
Dan Beksha
Robin Brown
Nekpen Osuan
Treasurer
Christina Chang
Secretary
Cory Evans
Also check out the proposed Constitution Changes in the blog post HERE, which will also be voted upon at the meeting.
Best of luck to all of the candidates! See you next Tuesday.
Proposed Constitution Changes
Every year, we make adjustments to the Constitution to better suit the needs of our growing organization.
In December, a committee of Board members appointed by the President were asked to come up with a set of proposals for 2012. Download the full set of recommended changes HERE.. The full Constitution and By-laws are also available HERE.
Some of the key issues we were focused on solving for included:
- Evolving the Committee structure – with a larger membership and larger number of Issue-Oriented Committees, the Board had ballooned in the recent years, making it unwieldy. The proposed changes does not designate a number of Committees but rather differentiates between Standing and Ad-hoc Committees. Only Chairs of Standing Committees will have votes on the Board.
- Increasing accountability of Committee Chairs – previously there had been no procedure for removing Chairs in the Constitution.
- Ensuring that if an Officer position is vacated with significant time still remaining in a given year, this decision is brought to the membership rather than being filled by Presidential appointment.
- Ability for the membership to propose resolutions
These amendments will be voted upon during the January General Meeting in conjunction with electing the 2012 Officers. Make sure to pay your 2012 dues beforehand so you can actually vote!
Feel free to email me at president [at] goMYD [dot] com if you have any questions or concerns.
