>>> THE PEOPLE IN THE GOVERNMENT WHO WERE VOTED INTO POWER ARE
LYING TO US, AND US KIDS SEEM TO
BE THE ONLY ONES WHO KNOW THIS
AND OUR PARENTS CALL B.S.
POLITICIANS SIT IN THEIR GUILDED
HOUSE AND SENATE SEATS FUNDED BY
THE NRA TELLING US NOTHING COULD
BE DONE TO PREVENT THIS, WE CALL
BFRMT S.
BFRMT S. THAT US KIDS DON’T KNOW WHAT
WE’RE TALKING ABOUT, WE’RE TOO
YOUNG TO UNDERSTAND.
HOW THE GOVERNMENT WORKS.
WE CALL B.S.
IF YOU AGREE, REGISTER TO VOTE.
CONTACT YOUR LOCAL CONGRESS
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. GIVE THEM A PIECE OF YOUR MIND.
>> THAT WAS EMMA GONZALEZ JUST
DAYS AFTER FORMER STUDENT
ENTERED HR HIGH SCHOOL IN
PARKLAND, FLORIDA, ARMED WITH AN
AR-15 ASSAULT RIFLE AND MIRDED
17 PEOPLE, 14 OF THEM STUDENTS.
GONZALEZ DOING THE SLOW DAILY
WORK OF HOLDING POLITICIANS TO
DO THEIR WORK.
CONTRIBUTING TO A NEW BOOK,
GLIMMER OF HOPE AUTHOR.
ALSO RAMON CONTRERAS NATIONAL
FIELD STRATEGIST, MARCH FOR OUR
LIVES.
LIVES. THEY PARTICIPATE TODAY MOBILIZE
YOUNG VOTERS THROUGHOUT THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. THE TOUR TAKES OFF ON OCTOBER 28
FOR A FINAL PUSH BEFORE THE MED
TERMS.
TERMS. >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING US.
>> HOW ARE YOU DOING?
>> NICE, IT’S CHILLY OUTSIDE,
BEING FROM FLORIDA.
BUT YEAH.
BUT YEAH. >> YOU AND YOUR CLASSMATES WERE
IN SUCH AN INCONCEIVABLY AWFUL
SITUATION AND ALSO IN THE MIDST
AND RIGHT ON THE BACKS OF THAT,
THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT.
I JUST WONDERED HOW YOU HAVE
BEEN ABLE TO PROCESS THAT ALL
WITH A LITTLE MORE TIME.
>> MY MOM SAYS I HAVEN’T
PROCESSED IT SO WE’RE STILL
WORKING ON THAT PERSONALLY.
BUT IN GENERAL I’M DOING THE
BEST I CAN AND I’M TRYING TO
CONNECT WITH MY FRIENDS AS MUCH
AS POSSIBLE AND CONTRIBUTE TO MY
LIFE AS A HUMAN BEING IN THAT
MANNER.
MANNER. >> YEAH.
>> YEAH. THE WORK YOU GUYS ARE DOING IS
SPECIFICALLY TARGETED AT YOUNG
VOTERS, AM I RIGHT?
>> YES.
>> YES. >> WHAT IS THE SORT OF IDEA
ABOUT HOW YOU GET YOUNG VOTERS
WHO THE DATA SHOWS PARTICULARLY
WITH MIDTERMS DON’T VOTE VERY
HIGH RATES?
HIGH RATES? HOW DO YOU REACH THEM?
>> FOR A VERY LONG TIME, YOU
KNOW, WHEN PEOPLE ARE GOING OUT
AND DOING GOTV AND PEOPLE ARE
DOING POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS, THEY
DON’T REACH OUT TO THE YOUNG
PEOPLE, RIGHT.
PEOPLE, RIGHT. THEY DON’T CREATE MESSAGE THAT’S
CONNECT WITH THE YOUNG PEOPLE.
THEY DON’T TALK ABOUT ISSUES
THAT CONNECT WITH YOUNG PEOPLE.
A LOT OF TIMES, RIGHT, YOUNG
PEOPLE ARE RO ALWAYS LOOK FOGGER
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED.
HOW CAN YOU GET INVOLVED WITH A
CANDIDATE OR ANY TYPE OF
POLITICAL PROCESS WHEN YOU JUST
CAN’T CONNECT WITH T RIGHT?
AND AFTER, YOU KNOW, THE
TERRIBLE MASS SHOOTINGS THAT
HAPPENED, A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE
WERE STARTING TO FEAR FOR THEIR
OWN LIVES BECAUSE THEY’RE GOING
TO THE SCHOOLS.
YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOUR SCHOOL
MIGHT GET SHOT UP.
PEOPLE STARTED TO FEEL EMPATHY
FOR THESE PEOPLE AND THEY
STARTED TO SAY, OKAY, YOUNG
PEOPLE MY AGE ARE DYING, RIGHT.
AND IT OPENED UP THE DOOR TO GUN
VIOLENCE TO ENTER IN DIFFERENT
COMMUNITIES AND MADE IT
INTERSECTIONAL.
INTERSECTIONAL. PEOPLE ARE DYING IN BLACK AND
BROWN COMMUNITIES.
BROWN COMMUNITIES. KIDS ARE DYING EVERY DAY WHEN
THEY GO TO SCHOOL.
KIDS ARE DYING WHEN THEY’RE
WALKING DOWN THE STREET AND
PEOPLE FEEL CONNECTED TO THAT
ESPECIALLY WHEN IT’S SOMEONE
YOUR AGE.
YOUR AGE. >> WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED IN THIS
PROCESS OF DOING THIS KIND OF
WORK?
WORK? >> SO MUCH.
I LEARNED SO MUCH MORE THAN I’VE
EVER LEARNED IN HIGH SCHOOL.
THAT’S NOT A DISS ON MY TEACHER
THAT’S A DISS ON THIS EDUCATION
SYSTEM, IT’S PITIFUL.
I LEARNED SO MANY EXPERIENCES I
NEVER KNEW ABOUT.
I LEARNED SO MUCH ABOUT NATIVE
AMERICANS, THAT THE HISTORY
BOOKS LIKE BURNED RECORDS OF
PRACTICALLY.
PRACTICALLY. THERE’S SUCH A LACK OF --
>> AND THIS IS FROM GOING AROUND
THE COUNTRY --
>> YEAH, GOING AROUND THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. >> MEETING PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT
BACKGROUNDS.
BACKGROUNDS. >> WE MET PEOPLE AT THE STANDING
ROCK RESERVATION.
ROCK RESERVATION. WE MET WITH PEOPLE IN CHICAGO.
WE MET WITH PEOPLE IN ALMOST
LIKE, WAS IT OVER SO MANY
STATES.
STATES. >> 63 CITIES.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. WE MADE AT LEAST 63 STOPS AND IT
WAS LIKE OVER 90 EVENTS AT THE
END OF THE WHOLE SUMMER, WHICH
IS MORE THAN ANY TOUR EVER HAD.
AND I CANNOT STRESS HOW MUCH OF
A DIFFERENT PERSON -- HOW MUCH
MORE GROWN I AM AND MORE
FLESCHED OUT AS A HUMAN BEING I
HAVE BECOME BECAUSE OF THAT.
>> WHAT IS THE SORT OF -- WHAT
IS THE BLOCK IN TERMS OF THE
EFFICACY OF POLITICS,
PARTICULARLY AT THE SORT OF
BASIC MUNDANE LEVEL OF
REGISTERING AND GOING TO VOTE,
RIGHT?
RIGHT? LIKE THE PROBLEMS ARE HUGE AND
MASSIVE AND LIFE AND DEATH.
THE ACTIONS YOU TAKE ARE THESE
SMALL LITTLE MINUSCULE PARTS OF
A LARGER THING, LIKE A LOT OF
PEOPLE NEED TO VOTE TO CHANGE
THOSE.
THOSE. BUT TAKING THAT ACTION IS
IMPORTANT.
IMPORTANT. HOW DO YOU COMMUNICATE THAT?
>> A LOT OF ISSUES THAT WE TALK
ABOUT, ALSO BEING ON THE SUMMER
TOUR I LEARNED A LOT ABOUT MY
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. I LEARNED A LOT OF THE
CONTROVERSY, THINGS PEOPLE
DISAGREE WITH IS USUALLY IN
CONGRESS, NOT WITH THE ACTUAL
AMERICAN PEOPLE.
AMERICAN PEOPLE. SPEAKING TO DIFFERENT
REPUBLICANS AND COUNTER
PROTESTERS, EVEN SPEAKING TO
COUNT MS DEMOCRATS, WE REALIZED
WE AGREE ON A LOT OF ISSUES WE
DISCUSS, RIGHT, THAT, YOU KNOW,
OUT OF ALL THE POLICY POINTS
LIKE UNIVERSAL BACKGROUND CHECKS
WHICH 90% OF AMERICANS AGREE
WITH, RIGHT, OUT OF ARPO, ARMING
DOMESTIC ABUSERS.
DOMESTIC ABUSERS. PEOPLE SUPPORT IT.
THE LACK OF INFORMATION BEING
RECEIVED TO CERTAIN PEOPLE AND,
YOU KNOW, WITH OUR ELECTED
OFFICIALS NOT REPRESENTING EACH
AMERICAN, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES
PEOPLE FEEL A NEED TO BE ABLE TO
COMBAT THAT RHETORIC AND THAT
THEORY THAT’S BEING PUSHED OUT.
AND WHAT WE DO IS WE HAVE THOSE
CONVERSATIONS, RIGHT.
CONVERSATIONS, RIGHT. WE CROSS THE STREETS, WE TALKED
TO THOSE COUNTER PROTESTERS AND
WE SAY HERE’S WHAT WE BELIEVE.
WE PUT THE POLITICS ASIDE AND
TALK ABOUT REAL ISSUES.
THAT’S WHEN WE MEET A COMMON
GROUND, AND A MIDDLE GROUND.
>> I HEAR THAT SO OFTEN FROM
PEOPLE THAT ARE SPENDING TIME IN
POLITICAL CONVERSATIONS WITH
PEOPLE THAT ARE NOT
PROFESSIONALLY IN POLITICS, THAT
EXACT SAME THEME.
WAS THAT WHAT YOU ENCOUNTERED AS
WELL?
WELL? >> EXACTLY.
>> EXACTLY. THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE I MET.
I DON’T AGREE WITH WHAT YOU’RE
SAYING.
SAYING. DO YOU KNOW WHAT WE’RE SAYING?
THIS IS WHAT WE’RE SAYING.
OH, YOU SHOULD SAY THAT MORE.
THAT’S ALL WE’VE EVER BEEN
SAYING.
SAYING. YOU JUST HAVEN’T BEEN LISTENING
TO US.
TO US. IT’S NOT THIS FAULT.
THAT MESSAGING DOESN’T GET
THROUGH TO THE OTHER SIDE BASED
ON THE TYPE OF MEDIA THEY
CONGRESS TATSUMA AS A PERSON.
IT’S HARD TO REACH OUT AND GO TO
OTHER NEWS SITES IF THEY’RE
TALKING ABOUT THINGS YOU DON’T
WANT TO LISTEN TO.
SOMETIMES YOU NEED TO BRANCH OUT
AND FIND OUT AS MUCH INFORMATION
ABOUT A TOPIC AS POSSIBLE.
>> I THINK THERE IS A SENSE WHEN
YOU GUYS STARTED DOING THE WORK
THAT YOU’RE DOING RIGHT IN THE
WAKE OF WHAT HAPPENED AT YOUR
SCHOOL THAT LIKE OH, THESE KIDS
ARE PASSIONATE AND IDEALISTIC
AND IT’S GREAT.
THE POLITICAL SYSTEM IS GOING TO
CHEW THEM UP.
A YEAR LATER ARE YOU MORE OR
LESS HOPEFUL ABOUT HOW THINGS
WORK?
WORK? >> I’M SUPER HOPEFUL BECAUSE I
KNOW THERE ARE SO MANY MORE
PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY
REGISTERED TO VOTE AND THEY’RE
GOING TO VOTE.
THEY’RE ACTUALLY GOING TO
TURN OUT TO VOTE.
AND LIKE JUST BECAUSE THERE’S A
LOT OF PEOPLE TURNING OUT IT
VOTE DOESN’T MEAN YOU CAN SLACK
OFF AND NOT VOTE.
DO THAT, IT’S VERY IMPORTANT.
JUST IN GENERAL, LIKE THERE’S SO
MUCH MORE --
>> YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’VE SEEN A
LOT --
LOT -- >> I FEEL MORE CONNECTED TO THIS
COUNTRY, MORE POLITICALLY
INVOLVED THAN I HAVE BEEN
OBVIOUSLY I’M ADVOCATING IN
POLITICS.
POLITICS. IT COMES TO A CERTAIN POINT
WHERE IF YOU TALK TO SOMEBODY,
LOOK AT THEM ON THE STREET,
THEY’RE GOOD TO VOTE.
EVERYBODY IS GETTING CLOSE TO
THAT POINT.
THAT POINT. EVERY DAY WE GET CLOSER TO THE
MID TERMS.
MID TERMS. >> CHRIS, NOVEMBER 6, AMERICA IS
GOING TO SEE YOUNG PEOPLE SHIFT
THE CULTURE OF POLITICS IN THIS
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE HAD ENOUGH.
YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE RALLIED.
THEY’VE MARCHED, RIGHT.
THEY’VE RALLIED WITH US IN OUR
SUMMER TOURS AND WE HAVE SPOKEN
TO YOUNG PEOPLE.
WE HAVE ORGANIZED YOUNG PEOPLE
AND THEY’RE STILL ORGANIZING
ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
YOUNG PEOPLE ARE TIRED, THEY’VE
HAD ENOUGH AND THEY WANT A
CONGRESS THAT REPRESENTS THEM
AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY’RE
GOING TO DO NOVEMBER 6.
>> WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO
REMEMBER, EVEN IF YOU DON’T SEE
SOMETHING ON YOUR BALLOT,
THERE’S NOTHING ON MY BALLOT
THAT TALKS ABOUT GUN REFORM.
THE PEOPLE TALK ABOUT GUN
REFORM.
REFORM. LOOK ON THEIR WEBSITES AND MAKE
SURE THEY PUT INTO EFFECT WHAT
YOU WANT TO PUT INTO EFFECT, ANY
TYPE OF TOPIC.
>> DO YOU HAVE A WAY OF TRACKING
WHO VOTES AND WHO -- LIKE DO YOU
HAVE METRICS FOR YOURSELF, DO
YOU HAVE TARGETS FOR YOURSELF
ABOUT GETTING PEOPLE TO THE
POLLS?
POLLS? >> YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO CREATE
NONVOTERS INTO VOTERS, RIGHT.
WE’RE NOT GOING TO SPECIFIC
DEMOGRAPHICS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE
NOT GOING TO SPECIFIC VOTERS.
WE’RE TRYING TO REACH A LARGE
GROUP OF AMERICANS THAT JUST
DON’T HAVE CONFIDENCE OR HAVE
LOST HOPE.
LOST HOPE. >> MORE THAN HALF OF AMERICANS.
LET’S BE CLEAR.
THE MID TERMS.
IT’S THE MAJORITY OF ELIGIBLE
VOTERS DO NOT VOTE.
>> THERE’S A REASON TO THAT,
RIGHT, CHRIS?
RIGHT, CHRIS? THERE’S A LOT OF VOTER
SUPPRESSION THAT GOES ON
ESPECIALLY IN THE STATE OF
TEXAS.
TEXAS. THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT
EDUCATED ABOUT WHEN THEY HAVE TO
VOTE.
VOTE. AND WHEN THEY HAVE TO EVEN
REGISTER, THE DEADLINE.
>> I SAW THIS CRAZY THING, YOUNG
PEOPLE DON’T VOTE BECAUSE THEY
DON’T THINK THEY’RE EDUCATED
ENOUGH.
ENOUGH. I SAW THIS POLL, MILLENNIALS,
I’M NOT SMART ENOUGH ABOUT THE
ISSUES TO VOTE.
YOU’RE AN AMERICAN.
YOU CAN TOTALLY VOTE.
THAT’S THE WHOLE POINT.
>> WE COMPLAIN.
THIS GOES DEEPER, YOU KNOW.
IT GOES INTO OUR EDUCATION
SYSTEM.
SYSTEM. WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE
IMPLEMENT CURRICULUM THAT
TEACHES PEOPLE HOW TO BE
CIVICALLY ENGAGED AND TEACH THEM
HOW TO VOTE.
ONCE WE GET TO THAT POINT IN
THIS COUNTRY, WE’RE ACTUALLY
TRYING TO GET PEOPLE OUT TO VOTE
AND NOT SUPPRESS THEM.
THEN WE’LL HAVE A BETTER
FUNCTIONING DEMOCRATIC PROCESS
IN THIS COUNTRY.
>> AND IF PEOPLE WHO FEEL LIKE
THEY’RE NOT SMART ENOUGH TO
VOTE, THAT’S BECAUSE THE SYSTEM
IS PROGRESSIVELY PUSHING PEOPLE
DOWN AND MAKING YOU FEEL LIKE
THIS PROCESS IS TOO DIFFICULT.
YOU DON’T HAVE A PLACE IN IT.
WE DO.
WE DO. >> THAT’S THE WHOLE POINT, WE
ALL DO.
ALL DO. >> IT’S SO WE HAVE A
REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY.
REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY. IF IT’S NOT REPRESENTATIVE WE