Backlash in Williamsburg: Recently we reported to you how the President of William & Mary has encouraged students to vote and challenged the local election official who has used the vague state law to discriminate against students.

Now some of the community members, who don't want students to have any say over the local government, are criticizing President Nichol.

According to Nichol, "This is like students are the last bastion to discriminate against in the voting process."

We couldn't agree more, and in fact we considered it a major victory in our ongoing work when the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, Brennan Center for Justice, and other key voting rights organizations added students to their short roster of voters who are discriminated against.

Students of William & Mary unite! Fight for your rights!

Progressive think tank promotes Millenial Generation: The New Democrat Network has an (obviously) partisan take on why “This Millennial Generation is absolutely vital to any long-term progressive coalition and should be central to any progressive political strategy. Their sheer numbers represent 25 percent of the population, and their political allegiances are unformed and unclaimed. Yet they show many signs of leaning toward a progressive set of values and worldview.”

An update from Williamsburg, VA, where students continut to battle for their voting rights against a vague state law that allows local officials to discriminate against them and prevent them from voting. The issue of student voting rights, and this case in particular, is one that we have been monitoring and speaking out on for several years now. From the article:

Stereotypes notwithstanding about the City of Williamsburg's mature populace, fully 45% are 18-24. That's because 5,700 undergraduates attend the College of William & Mary, and 80% of them live in dorms within city limits.

The President of the school, Gene Nichol, has now joined student leaders in calling for an end to the unfair restrictions on students voting where the live in Williamsburg. He recently sent out an email to the student body encouraging them to vote:

This week Nichol sent a blast e-mail to the student body encouraging them to vote and assuring them that he was advocating for legislation to make student voting easier. He directed them to the website www.voteinwilliamsburg.com, which was created by the Student Assembly. It encourages students to vote locally because:

* Off-campus housing codes affect where they live and how many people they can live with.

* Students depend on the pay and working environment of jobs.

* Noise ordinances affect students.

* Local taxes, prices and business zoning laws all have an impact.

"For those students who want to vote in Williamsburg, I think that it ought to be far easier to register and to vote," said Nichol in an interview Friday. "We shouldn't have unconstitutional barriers to prevent them from that.

David Sievers, a leading activist on this issue and a founder of a national network called the Student Voting Rights Campaign, is running for City Council in Williamsburg.

If students stand up and get involved, they may finally get some representation in the government that makes decisions where they live.

Kinky Friedman reaches out to young voters in his race for Texas governor, saying, "Young people are the key to this election":

If Monday's audience at The University of Texas at Tyler didn't look like the typical turnout for a political rally, independent candidate for governor Kinky Friedman didn't mind.

He says the Republicans and Democrats can have the 29 percent of registered voters who turned out for the last gubernatorial election. He'll take the other 71 percent, who are disaffected and disgusted with the present system, he says.

An Alternative Spring Break from MTV. MTV is always on the cusp of what is new, different and young. This story is in keeping then with those who believe that we are witnessing a new spirit of participation among the new generation:

But something will be strikingly - indeed, refreshingly - different today as one of TV's most iconic programs gets underway. In a phrase, "Spring Break" has gotten serious. The culmination of a joint effort with United Way that was launched in February, this week's so-called "Alternative Spring Break" will be just that - an alternative to the many other "Spring Breaks" that came before. Along with a vast array of the usual "SB" special programs and events this week, it will also feature news reports that were collected by some 100 student-journalists from around the country who are part of MTV's so-called "Storm Corps" and who converged on Biloxi, Miss., and Foley, Ala., last week to help rebuild communities devastated by Katrina. (A special documentary will air next Saturday at 4 p.m. entitled "The Amazing Break," in part about how other kids gave back during their week off.)

Read the article for yourself.

[With a minor clarification, Rock the Vote is an independent, non-profit organization that partners with MTV among other media companies, we're not part of MTV.]

Party at the polls:

From this story on the Pittsburg Channel for the election there last week, "The League of Young Voters held a "Party at the Polls" at the Bouquet Street entrance to Posvar Hall at the University of Pittsburgh. The League registered 800 voters in the university dorms for the special election, and is participating in a Yale University study to see if having a party increases turnout more than traditional "get out the vote" efforts."

Looking forward to finding out the results!

Wyclef, a contemporary hip-hop pioneer and someone who has helped define pop culture in the U.S. and around the world, has spent a lot of his time and energy raising awareness about conditions in Haiti, where he's from. Here's a great quote by Wyclef from an article about national identity in our global era.

"I think the greatest thing about America is the American dream," said Wyclef Jean, the Grammy-winning member of The Fugees who came to the United States from Haiti when he was 9 years old. He is still a citizen of Haiti, with permanent resident status here. "America allows you take that dream and bring it back to your country and help you inspire more people."

While he is upfront about his concern for his native country (he started a foundation, Yele Haiti, that does work there and recently flew down to take part in elections), Wyclef denies the idea that he's somehow not a part of American society, citing as examples his work with Rock the Vote here as well as his performance at an event following Sept. 11.

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm taking heavy part in the United States," he said. "I am the American dream whether they want to accept it or not."

If you know someone who has been displaced from Louisiana, here is more information about voting in the upcoming election from the Louisiana Secretary of State.

Now this is what I'm talking about:

MONROE TOWNSHIP
Three teenagers vie for school board spots

They aren't old enough to legally drink, and they'll have to battle more seasoned politicians on the campaign trail, but that's not deterring three Middlesex County teenagers who are running for school board positions April 19.

Brian Hackett, 18, Chris Pordon, 18, and Adam Sherman, 19, say they want to bring a new, younger perspective to their three respective school boards and get young voters to the polls.

“I believe in civic responsibility and civic participation,” Hackett, a senior at Monroe Township High told The Sunday Star-Ledger of Newark.

“I feel that running for the school board is a way to fully exercise my rights.”

Pordon, a senior at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School and Adam Sherman, 19, a Rutgers University sophomore and Highland Park resident will also take on their elders in the political arena.

According to Rutgers sophomore Rick Rosenberg, who won a seat on the South River School Board two years ago, there should be at least one young member on every school board.

“The student population deserves just as much of a chance as the parents,” said Rosenberg, who met Hackett and Pordon through his organization Young People for a Better America and has been advising them.

Kevin Burke from Chattanooga writes an inspiring column urging young people to take over the future. Leading with a humorous quote from President Kennedy about how mom's want their sons to be president but not to become politicians in the process, Kevin writes:

Education cannot always replace experience, but we must get young people in office. Those of you, young and old, that do vote – I can only ask that you take into consideration not only your present, but our future. To my fellow young people – I ask that you take a stand as well. Take a chance and run for public office.

Amen!

Live webchat with a voice for our generation! Tune in on Monday at 5pm for a live webchat with Anya Kamanetz, author of "Generation Debt." Get up to speed on the conversation about the economic well being of younger generations and what can be done to make change!