Organizing Fellows: Coretta in Georgia

July 24, 2008

As part of a continuing series, we’re following Obama Organizing Fellows as they share their stories and their experiences. They discuss the people they meet, the hardships of organizing, what the campaign means to them, and how this summer is changing their perspective.

Coretta is an Organizing Fellow in Georgia. Her stories appear each Thursday.

At times I have a hard time believing how heavily involved in the campaign I’ve become. Politics, I used to think, was not for me. But having been present when hope takes hold in the hearts of supporters has forever changed my mind. This campaign moves me to strike up conversations and before I realize it, I am a few sentences into why I support Barack Obama. Under normal circumstances, people are pleasant but some of my best experiences are when I was able to uncover our common denominator, and then, voilà, a new volunteer signs up and is ready to be plugged in!

I have been amazed at how attentive and open people are, especially once they find out I am an Obama Organizing Fellow. When I meet someone who thinks differently, I try to understand their position, so I ask a probing questions like “What is it that concerns you about Senator Obama?” and “Have you visited BarackObama.com to get the facts?” While these types of questions have mixed responses, they tend to help create some elbowroom for the Senator. As much as I do not like to spend too much time debating partisan issues, I know that times like these give me a chance to recruit some new people for the Campaign for Change.

This brings to mind how an unplanned stop turned into an ongoing voter registration drive. After setting up two hair salons in Adamsville as new voter registration locations, we stopped by one of the oldest bookstores in America, The Shrine of the Black Maddona Bookstore & Cultural Center. We were welcomed to use a portion of their bookstore to set up for voter registration. Early Saturday morning we took them up on their offer and set up a voter registration event, and we plan to return each Saturday to build a stronger following.

Later that evening we went to a Neighborhood Planning Unit (NPU), which is a citizen advisory council held at the Community Baptist Church of God. I was able to give an overview of what I am doing as an Obama Organizing Fellow, and highlighted the focus on voter registration and the recruitment of volunteers. We gave voter registration forms and added more names to our contact list. The day ended around 10pm for us, but we accomplished a great deal.

I cannot believe there are less than four days left until my Organizing Fellowship ends. Where did the time go? These last six weeks have shown me that politics requires a passionate spirit and good character: neither one alone will get the job done. With less than 102 days until the General Election I’ve started my election countdown, to keep me focused on working to ensure that Senator Obama is our next President.