Director Applications Due Tomorrow!

Just a friendly reminder that that MYD Director Applications are due tomorrow!

We look forward to building a fantastic team this year and encourage everyone to apply.

All the info is HERE

Idealist.org: Support It or Lose It

Idealist.org, the best resource for non-profit jobs, volunteer opportunities and pretty much everything having to do with “doing good” in New York could be the next victim of the recession. Idealist sent out an appeal earlier today:

Very briefly, here’s what happened. Over the past ten years, most of our funding has come from the small fees we charge organizations for posting their jobs on Idealist. By September 2008, after years of steady growth, these little drops were covering 70% of our budget.

Then, in October of that year, the financial crisis exploded, many organizations understandably froze their hiring, and from one week to the next our earned income was cut almost in half, leaving us with a hole of more than $100,000 each month.

That was 16 months ago, and since then we’ve survived on faith and fumes, by cutting expenses, and by getting a few large gifts from new and old friends. But now we are about to hit a wall, and that’s why we decided to ask.

If you’ve ever found a job, posted a job, found an internship or used Idealist to learn about the non-profit world, it’s time to give back, even if you can only give $5 or $10. Without it, many local organizations in our city will suffer.

Donate to Idealist.org here.

National Phenomenon?

Last year was tremendous for the Manhattan Young Democrats. We led a fight in our own state on Marriage Equality. We won awards in Chicago and trained young people there how to be awesome. We even picked a fight with the South Carolina GOP.

New York – check
Chicago – check
South Carolina – check

And now, MYD is being cited as an example for a “new model for City-wide or local political activism” by Democratic organizers in Baltimore who are inviting Dems from all over their city to a brainstorming session to reinvigorate their clubs. Give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back for setting a new standard. Do it again because you’ve not only gone a long way toward saving the party in New York, but in Maryland as well.

Baltimore – check  … is MYD becoming a national phenomenon?

Special thanks to the Baltimore Chronicle (http://baltimorechronicle.com/2010/012610Dems.shtml) for printing the story, and Al Barry and Kim Forsyth for organizing the meeting in Baltimore and preaching the gospel of Organizing 2.0.

He Said What?!

A lot of pols have said a lot of, umm, interesting things in the wake of the special election in Massachusetts last Tuesday.  But in the annals of awesome stuff said by politicians on camera, surely this from NYC’s own Anthony Weiner is up there:

 

I totally agree with the point he’s making, by the way.  But wow.

Fired Up!

Upset that Martha Coakley didn’t win last night? Hell yeah, you are! But don’t lose heart, it doesn’t end here. Instead, it’s just getting started. Case in point, the DNC’s youth arm, Gen 44 (that’s 44 for our President) is holding it’s FIRST event in the tri-state area for young people on January 25, at Hiro in NYC at 6:30. Mayor Corey Booker, known for his comedic tiff with Conan O’brian, will be the guest at that event.

Although not as awesome as MYD, Gen44 is doing the important work of supporting our Democratic friends outside of Manhattan and New York State. It will be a fun event but, more importantly, it’s going to be an event that helps put down the Republican menace that’s rising anew.

MLK in NYC

A great photo of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr addressing New York City Officials in 1964.
MYD remembers Dr. King today and strives to live his dream.

(source: Divine 9, Bro. Lawrence C. Ross, Jr.)

First Fashion Trend of 2010?

Our esteemed Treasurer and self-proclaimed “NY Times Junkie” Reggie was the first to notice an MYD shout out on City Room today!

In a nod to “Napoleon Dynamite,” the Manhattan Young Democrats are selling ringer T-shirts that read “Don’t Vote for Pedro” to convince Bronx residents not to vote for State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. [Bronx News Network]

Don’t be left out get yours today! Order HERE

The Latest from Pedro!

From City Room, the latest on our favorite state senator…

The State Senate majority leader, Pedro Espada Jr., is said to have parked his Mercedes-Benz in front of a fire hydrant by his Bainbridge House residence on Friday night with a police vehicle-identification placard illegally displayed to ward off potential tickets. The blocking of the hydrant irritated neighborhood residents, particularly after serious fires in the Bronx last month.

MYD in 2009

Well, folks. It’s been about nine months since we relaunched MYD’s online presence and www.goMYD.com was brought into the world. It’s been a great year for the organization, and we thought the best way to share our successes is with a very self-indulgent, four-minute video and photo montage.

I’m off for the next couple weeks on some much needed vacation, so things will be slow around here until the new year. A huge thanks to you, our readers and supporters, who have helped us get the site established and have contributed to its fantastic growth since launch.

Check out Al’s post below on Board positions opening up in January.  We need great leaders who are willing to work their asses off to get some serious change done next year. We have the potential to make a huge impact on state politics in 2010. If you’ve been reading our blog, you know that reform will not come easily — but also that the Empire State is on the brink and needs our help more than ever before. Ask yourself: if not in 2010, then when?

I hope to see you at the elections in January. Happy Holidays to all — and enjoy the video!

MYD Targeted as GOP Threat

As a South Carolina native, I worry about the honor of my home State. We’ve had a run of national embarrassments lately: Miss Teen SC in ‘07, GOP Gov. Mark Sanford (R) cheating on his wife while vowing to stay in office and Congressman Joe Wilson (R) yelling “You lie” at the President while  he was addressing Congress.

I couldn’t take it anymore, so I invited Rob Miller, the Democratic challenger to Joe Wilson, up to New York for a small fundrasier. To my surprise, the SC GOP noticed: (See Right –>).

That’s right, the Palmetto Scoop, a local Republican e-zine, decided to print a SC GOP dig… against us. They try to lambaste Miller by tying him to us “New York City liberals” (ouch… feel the burn?). Also, why does the GOP operative they cite, Ryan Meerstein, hate NYC liberals so much? Could it be because he worked for the Giuliani Presidential Campaign? Maybe.

In any case, thank you Palmetto Scoop, for the web traffic. And, for pointing out that the SC GOP has nothing better to hit Miller with. Maybe next time you could just send me an email so I can save you the embarrassment. I’d be happy to tell you why I, as a South Carolinian and president of the Manhattan Young Democrats, support Rob Miller for Congress.

Sincerely,
Al Benninghoff
South Carolinian and President of the Manhattan Young Democrats

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