In one sentence. To create social equity through civic participation.
Over the past forty years social inequality has been steadily increasing in the United States. The group that consistently finds themselves voiceless are those who make the least amount of money. But there is a loophole in the system. It is called democracy. We believe that by taking a more active role in the political system, underrepresented and under-served groups will make their voices louder as well as be able to elect leaders who have their best interests at heart. In addition, we believe that this must be coupled with a steady flow of information and education into the most under-served communities, so they have the knowledge to elect the leaders to serve them best. For people who lack money and influence, the vote is their sole means of being heard
There are enormous disparities that exist in America across income levels in all forms of participation, particularly voting. A study on these disparities found that 86% of people with incomes above $75,000 claim to have voted in presidential elections as compared with only 52% of people with incomes under $15,000. As a result of the participation disparity across demographic lines, politicians are more responsive to the opinions of high-income constituents. A study of roll call votes under the 107th and 108th Congresses reported that legislators were three times more responsive to high-income constituents than middle-income constituents and were the least responsive to the needs of low-income constituents.
What is the potential for change?
There are a significant number of people in this country who do not vote. Following the statistic of 206 eligible voters in the United States, we're left with 82 million people who did not vote in 2008. (One of our highest turnouts in recent history) Over 100 million people did not vote in midterm elections. All of these eligible non-voters are people capable of improving their community. The majority of that 100 million are lower income citizens, and many are not even registered to vote.
New York City is legendary for its lack of voter participation. To us, this means greater potential for improvement. In 2001 only 15 percent of eligible voters turned out to make Micheal Bloomberg mayor. Less then 10,000 votes decided the election. In a city of 8 million, imagine the effect a mere 50 or 20 or even 10 thousand new participants could have on an election.
What type of information and education do we provide?
Flyering will be our primary mode of distributing information in a community. For example, prior to a city council election we will distribute a flyer with every candidates name and their voting record and stances in the issues. In addition, we will aggressively distribute literature that informs citizens about who their elected officials are and how they can be reached.
In time, we will develop a newsletter. Content will range from interviews with local politicians where we ask "hard" questions and challenge them on past decisions, opinion articles from community leaders, and commentary from citizens.
In addition, we hope to partner with local schools and give presentations that highlight the importance of voting and being politically active.
What we do different?
Two staples of our strategy are one on one contact and a focus on local elections. We go door to door and speak with people face to face. This provides two great advantages for us. First, people are more apt to listen when they feel the message is personal. Also, we more intimately hear the concerns and barriers to voting which allow us to develop more effective strategies, arguments, and techniques. In regards to local elections, we believe that municipal government is the most effective way to enact change in the community. Turnouts to municipal elections are dismally low, as low as single digits in some major cities. We believe this is where we can make the greatest change.
How will our work improve the national community?
When we broaden voter participation across the economic spectrum we subsequently promote social equity in the United States. By becoming more politically active, people will have a greater stake in their community and increased interest in improving their neighborhood. Through education, people become informed voters allowing them to elect leaders that will vote for and pass legislation that favors them.
What party do we work for?
We do not support any particular party nor endorse specific candidates. All we ask is that voters educate themselves and participate.
Being heard is not a matter of supporting a political party. In simply means casting your vote, for anyone. For government officials to take notice of a community they simply must see that they participate. When election time comes around they without a doubt will do what they need to do to secure your vote.
What do aardvarks have to do with civic participation?
The name was inspired by Malcolm X's journey of self-discovery. Prior to becoming the man we all know, Malcolm X was involved in drugs, prostitution of women, and armed robbery. While in prison, Malcolm had an awakening of sorts, and realized that he was ignorant on many levels. Determined to educate himself but unsure where to start, he grabbed our most elemental book, the dictionary, and simply began to copy words. The first word in the dictionary is aardvark. Malcolm said aardvark always stuck with him. In the realm of politics, the most elemental form of civic participation, is the vote. At The Aardvark Movement, we believe that the catalyst for change can be as simple as opening up the dictionary or filling out a ballot.
How can you help?
Volunteer and Donate!
Like every organization, we have bills. Fortunately, we keep them very low so even the smallest contribution can go a long way.
We always need volunteers to help with voter registration. E-mail homebase@theaardvarkmovement.org for more information.
Please e-mail us additional questions or post them below!
