Please, read our blog from a Summer Fellow
The SEIU generously offered to host our one-day field organizer training, a diverse group of individuals of all ages arrived ready to soak up information about canvassing, internet organizing, creating a field plan, and how to effectively deliver their message. Dan Lucas, our Vice President for Political Affairs, infused his lessons with anecdotes from the road. With experience as the political advisor to presidential candidates, members of Congress, as well as the upstate field director for Hillary Clinton for Senate, he knows the ins and outs of political field work.
As someone who started working on campaigns without technology like cell phones, the internet, or email, Dan sees our generation’s technology boom as a mixed blessing. Although the internet and cell phones expedite communication, today’s technology also has its drawbacks—it takes away from people’s willingness to make personal connections. Now, when it is so easy to send an email, a text message, or make a phone call, people—especially young adults—can too often hide behind technology and shy away from the power of person to person contact.
And in politics, although the internet and email makes our lives easier, on Saturday, Dan strongly emphasized how important these personal connections are to really making a difference on a campaign. When reaching out to constituents, people forget emails and snail mail, but they don’t forget faces and people who show up at their door. After all, democracy in its essence is all about giving people a voice. So when reaching out to the public and campaigning on behalf of candidates, we can’t forget how important it is to be proactive. Clicking a mouse may be convenient, but is it really more effective than shaking someone’s hand?
More photos from the training:
Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.