Tuesday, December 23, 2008

a belated thank you

emailed to Southside, South End, and West End volunteers on December 23.

Dear volunteers and friends,

You are my Obama family and this note of thanks is long overdue. Thank you for taking me in. Thank you for welcoming me into your city and neighborhoods. Thank you for offering me beds to sleep on, for lending me your cars, for buying me food, and for offering me caffeine. Thank you for opening your houses to strangers whom you have never met, for trusting me, and for sticking with the cause. Thank you for yelling at the TV with us during the debates, for crying with us during the speeches, for organizing thousands of door hangers, for knocking on more doors than you can count, for toting your children with you when you worked, and for making the South Side office the cool place to be. And most of all, thank you for opening your hearts, giving so much of your time to this movement, and never, ever losing hope.

We all worked long and hard for this victory, and every single one of you deserves to be reveling in this moment. So, congratulations! We could never have done this without you.

On Election Night, President-Elect Barack Obama reminded the nation, "This victory alone is not the change we seek; it is only the chance for us to make that change." I said something similar a few nights later at our post-election gathering: This fight is not over. On the contrary, it is just beginning.

Hopefully, in the days after the election, you received two important emails from the campaign:

  • The first email invited you to complete a volunteer survey about your experience with the campaign. If you have not taken the time to complete it, please do so now. National campaign staff are taking survey responses very seriously as they plan our next steps.

  • The second email asked you to host or attend a "Change is Coming" house party last weekend: December 13th and 14th. At these meetings, which happened nationwide, volunteers, staff, and supporters discussed what THEY wanted to see happen next, now that the campaign is over and Barack prepares to take office. If you did not attend one of these meetings, worry not! There are many opportunities to talk about next steps in the survey above, or email your thoughts to me: I would be more than happy to pass them along.

Up next: Code name 'OFA 2.0'

While the campaign is over, the movement for change and renewal has just begun. The opportunity to make a real difference in not only our government's domestic and international policy but the American psyche has always existed. We have always been able to fight for equality for all Americans, demand the end of an unjust war, organize for a healthcare system that works for patients and not insurance company CEOs, and call for a second look at our government's spending priorities.

But now, and for the next four years, we've got a guy on the inside.

Staff from all levels of the campaign have been working diligently since November 5th (I know? Can you believe it? I slept…..) to build an organization that will channel the amazing energy we have found in ourselves and nourished in our neighbors into the coming years. Right now, we're calling it "Obama For America, 2.0". We don't know what it will eventually be called, what legal presence it will have, or what the organization will look like. But we do know this:

Our victory proved that grassroots organizing works at any scale, big or small. Volunteers on the ground have always been and will continue to be the most important part and the driving force of this movement. Remember those neighborhood teams? Those house meetings? They're not going anywhere.

While every iteration of OFA 2.0 will be different, much like the campaign's appearance and methodology differed state to state, across the country we will focus on:
  • Electing progressive candidates to every office, local to national

  • Lobbying current elected officials to promote items on Barack's legislative agenda, such as universal healthcare, a worker-centered resolution to our economic crisis, and repairing our public school system.

  • Local service, volunteerism, and civic engagement.

So, what can I do now?

Ah hah! I thought you might ask. Look forward to more news and emails about OFA 2.0 in the coming weeks and months, but don't be afraid to start organizing now. We are facing some of the biggest crises this nation has ever seen, and we're all going to need to chip in if we're going to make it through.

What you can do right now:
  • Visit change.gov, the official website of President-Elect Obama. On the site, you can participate in discussions on healthcare and civic service, read about the most important items on Barack's agenda, and learn about ways you can get involved.

  • Plan or participate in a service project before Inauguration Day. Congress has transformed the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, this year January 19th, the day before the Inauguration, into a national day of community service. To honor Dr. King's legacy, the President-elect and Vice President-elect and their families will participate in activities dedicated to serving others. Wherever you are on January 19th, I urge you to volunteer and serve.

  • Start to organize now. There is no need to wait for the official OFA 2.0 roll-out or even for the Inauguration. Host a house meeting. Invite all the wonderful volunteers you met over the last few months. Talk about ways you can change your neighborhood and change Pittsburgh. Write letters to your Representatives and Senators urging them to work quickly to implement Barack's agenda as well as the issues that are most important to you.Volunteer at your local school or food bank. Interested in seeing how some Pittsburgh volunteers are working to keep the movement alive? Check out http://www.pittsburghhopes.org.

Thank you.

Thank you for moving our country forward. Thank you for being a part of something amazing. And thank you for being a part of my life. I had a wonderful time in Pittsburgh, and already miss you all.

If you need anything or have any questions, do not hesitate to email me.

Happy holidays,
~Matt Cohen-Price
your Southside/South End/West End Field Organizer
matt.cohen-price@obamaalumni.com