General Membership meeting in-person at Cedar Crest College and via Zoom

Speaker:  Michael “Nykolai” Blichar, Jr., M Ed
Co-Chair, City of Allentown Human Relations Commission
Northampton Community College

Topic: Motivating Students to Participate in Democracy

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Additional information about Michael Blichar's presentation:

The purpose of the Northampton Community College event was to motivate students to go out to vote in the primary elections/get them more informed about the issues related to the current state of our U.S. democracy. The panel was composed of a variety of individuals who could bring a diverse perspective to the conversation. We made sure that our panel was diverse in political thought in addition to being diverse in race, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. We created a set list of questions pertaining to democratic related issues but allowed for audience interaction and questions in order for students to be able to gain a better understanding of why voting is so important in order to address many of the issues that were being discussed during the panel discussion. It was clear through our conversations that we are in a tough time in American democracy but that participation of young people is becoming ever more important in the political process. The panel hit on a number of democracy related questions including gerrymandering, the root of our current partisanship, voter rights, young people, women,  and people of color running for office, the originalist movement, the role racism plays, polarization in the US vs. other nations, and more.

Our target audience was primarily students through our non-partisan voter education efforts here at Northampton Community College. The goal was to motivate students to want to take action this election cycle and to learn more about the issues while also getting informed on who and what is on their ballot and to make a plan to get to the polls on primary election day. Students at NCC are diverse and come from a variety of backgrounds, so it was geared towards folks of all ages and demographics.

There was a political connection to the content, though because of the work we do, we maintain non-partisanship in our events and voter education related efforts. Panelists were allowed to express their opinions openly and freely, however the moderator and NCC Votes could not promote any one candidate or political party. We were sure to have at least one conservative voice on the panel in addition to moderates and progressives. We view the issue of democracy being at stake as a non-partisan issue.