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.

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.

Officer positions are President, Executive Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer (learn exactly what the requirements are in Article III of the MYD Constitution, HERE). These positions are elected at the first meeting of the year by dues paying members, our meeting will be held Tuesday, January 17 at 7pm – we are currently working on securing a location so watch out for deets in the newsletter!

To run for these positions you must have attended at least one MYD event in 2011 and be a dues paying member for 2012.

Other Board position applications such as Directorships and Committee Chairmanships will be made available later in the month.

Please submit Officer Applications to me at president [@] gomyd.com by 6PM on Monday, Jan 9th. Applications will then be posted on the 10th to the blog for the general membership to read and review before the elections.

Jan 9: Officer applications due to outgoing President

Jan 10: All officer candidates’ applications posted to goMYD.com

Jan 17: Officer Elections at first General Meeting of the year

Timing for Director applications and Issue- Oriented Committee elections will be finalized in the new year.

We’ve also heard that some special guests might be dropping by.  Last year we were joined by Public Advocate Bill deBlasio, Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh and State Senator Gustavo Rivera.  NYC politicos know that the MYD party is the place to be!

This party is a chance for us to thank you all for the work you did in 2011, and to gear up for 2012.  So join us for drinks, dancing and fun!  RSVP on Facebook HERE.

Professor Gail Garfield of John Jay College moderated the panel, which included four speakers:

• Emily May, executive director of Hollaback, an international movement which combats street harassment through mobile technology.
• Hilary Nemchik, who chairs Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s Domestic Violence Task Force.
• Jerin Afria, of the National Organization for Women’s Young Feminist Task Force.
• Susan Moesker of the Center for Anti-Violence Education, which teaches leadership, self-defense, and violence prevention.

Street harassment is pervasive. In the Borough President’s 2007 report Hidden in Plain Sight, Nemchik said, nearly two-thirds of survey respondents reported being harassed on the subway system. According to May, harassment seems to occur across the spectrum, with the stories submitted to Hollaback implicating harassers of all races and socioeconomic statuses. The panelists did agree that people of color and members of the LGBT community are disproportionately targeted, since there are more “reasons” a potential harasser can seize upon.

But despite the pervasiveness of gender violence in public spaces, the panelists agreed that awareness of the issue is too low and that authorities often fail to take it seriously, which deters reporting of harassment. Moesker said that many victims attending her classes shared feelings that they hadn’t known where to go or what to do in response to street harassment. And when the MTA’s anti-harassment ads urge victims to contact police and transit workers, but transit workers are increasingly scarce (due to layoffs) and station intercoms too often broken, what message does that send? By contrast, when the city made a serious commitment to cracking down on gender violence in South Slope (including a increased police presence), reporting of harassment increased. Also important to combat this lack of awareness is additional research, as is currently being conducted by Cornell University researchers.

The panelists were optimistic about the progress made thus far. Nemchik said the street harassment was relatively young, and May agreed, arguing that in many ways the street harassment movement was closely tracking the progress made by workplace harassment advocates in prior decades. “We are at the center of the movement today,” May said, pointing out that her group began as a handful of friends in 2005 and now and now has dozens of chapters across the world. Panelists encouraged audience members to get involved with their organizations and in events like March’s International Anti-Street Harassment Week.

Action also begins with us as individuals. As Afria pointed out, gendered violence “exists in a spectrum,” with rape and murder at its extreme end and catcalls and harassment at the other. In a culture where harassment is seen as normal, actions further down the spectrum begin to seem more acceptable. There’s one thing anyone can do, even if you’re unable to take the time to volunteer, Afria said: “Hold the people around you accountable.”

The YCP is dedicated to reducing hunger while promoting dignity and self-sufficiency.  YCP champions the cause of the hungry through food pantry and meal distribution programs, nutrition education, basic hygiene services, homeless support, and related services. YCP’s community based programs focus on East Harlem and other underserved communities throughout New York City.

Dress for Success
Twice a year, DfS hosts a sale in Manhattan/Harlem and sell clothes to all of their partner programs and female clientele, including all those who haven’t yet been suited by Dress for Success. Clients will have the opportunity to purchase suits, professional separates, and accessories at super low prices. MYDers will staff the sale and get a taste of what it feels like to work in retail (for those of us that don’t already know) much like the women of the Living Wage campaign that MYD supports.
Saturday, November 5th
Shifts 9:45am – 1:00pm
          1:00pm – 4:00pm
Contact Heather at women@GOMYD.com to sign up.

Yorkville Common Pantry
On Saturday, November 19th MYD will heading up to the Yorkville Common Pantry in East Harlem to help them prepare for Thanksgiving.  Volunteers will help sort through the many donations they receive to be distributed during Thanksgiving week.  There will be some heavy lifting.  To sign up, email Kim: secretary@GOMYD.com.

And check out all of our upcoming events on our calendar.

Nearly forty young people gathered to listen as Mr. Berg and YCP’s Executive Director Stephen Grimaldi explained how today over 1 million New Yorkers do not get enough to eat.  That statistic is especially appalling when you consider that New York is home to 62 billionaires with a net worth of over $200 billion!

So what can we do?  As Democrats we need to begin by urging Governor Cuomo to restore funding for social programs that address the problem of hunger in our city and state.  To send a letter directly to the Governor, simply click HERE and fill out your information.  It’s an easy yet effective way to make your voice heard on the issue.

For more information on hunger and food insecurity, you can visit the NYCCAH website.  To make a donation directly to the YCP, click HERE.

If for some reason the link does not work, you can email us directly at secretary@gomyd.com.  We will send you information on where to meet up and when.

After the event you are invited to come to Battery Park and place a message or memento on The WALL OF REMEMBRANCE.