- It's a good time to get started. So my name is Gerhard Blom. I work at a large educational institution
- just a little bit north of Fatwater. None of the things said here tonight represent the use of that
- institution. And I want to welcome you all. Thanks for coming. So I'm going to talk very long, but I
- thought I'd say a few things.
- So I think many of us are sad, angry, frustrated with things that are going on in the country. And not
- too long ago, I actually watched a speech that Robert DeNiro gave, like a seven-minute clip. And he
- basically asked questions like, can you love a country where mass agents spread fear across the population?
- Can you love a country where 70% of the people that are detained by ICE have no criminal record? Can
- you love a country where science and scholarship is undermined? Can you love a country where entire
- civilizations are threatened with extinction? Can you love a country where law firms and universities
- are extorted? And when you listen to that speech by Robert De Niro, everybody said, no, no, no, no,
- no, we cannot love a country. My attitude is perhaps different.
- And when I thought about it, this is like a child. If you're a parent, you have a child that
- has a devastating medical diagnosis. It might be angry. It might be grief. There might be fear. There
- might be pain. But in all of this pain and anger and bewilderment, I think all of us as parents would
- choose to love our child, perhaps even with more intensity. So perhaps you could do the same thing with
- our country when things go wrong. Love it with more intensity.
- love it with more passion, love it with more resourcefulness, love it with more clarity of mind, and
- perhaps with more hope and more cooperation. That's the spirit in which I would like to proceed, and
- I'm very grateful. When I asked three fabulous folks to help us out tonight, they all said yes without
- any hesitation. So we have Matt Pierce, who represents Bloomington, Albin Indy,
- We have Sidney Suleik, who represents a bunch of people in Bloomington in the city council. And we have
- a fabulous student, Brooklyn Lembright, whom I listened to at a speech that she gave last fall. And
- all of those folks basically said, yes, I'll come. And I'm very, very grateful that you're here. So
- each one of the speakers will have about eight or so minutes to give and take. And since we have such
- a huge group, we have to be very, very formal about the conversation afterwards.
- So afterwards, we have a conversation. And then we have a few people here from local community organizations.
- They're going to say a few things about their organization and their sign-up sheets outside. So if you
- want to get more information about those groups, if you want to help, you can sign up outside. And then
- that would be the end of the day. So without further ado, why don't we welcome Matt Pierce to lead us
- off with his thoughts
- job is a senior lecturer in the media school so I have to prove I know how to handle a microphone. Okay
- well when I was asked to speak tonight about kind of what we think of our country and how we proceed
- from here and what's really important in this 250th anniversary of the founding of our nation, the first
- thing that
- immediately came to my mind was the very beginning of the preamble of the Constitution of the United
- States, which says, we the people of the United States in order to form a more perfect union. And they
- didn't say to form a perfect union because they knew they couldn't reach perfection, but the Constitution
- set out this aspiration that we would continue
- it would become more perfect. But we know at the time that we had those words of aspiration that in
- fact it was far from a perfect union and you might argue it's far from perfect today. But we had slavery,
- obviously, which after the Civil War became a century of Jim Crow laws. We had women who had to fight
- for their rights, right to suffrage, and other equal rights over time.
- had a lot of situations where we had an opportunity to make our union more perfect and what I believe
- makes our country so great is that although it often takes too long, although it's often too much of
- a struggle, eventually we come to grips with some of the biggest problems confronting our nation and
- we address them and we fix them. We basically strive to
- make our country more perfect. And President Obama, back in 2008, you might remember his campaign for
- president, and the issue of race came up in the campaign. And he felt the need to make a speech
- in Philadelphia about race. And it became known as the More Perfect Union speech, which I think
- is interesting. And in that speech, one of the things that
- President Obama said, is what would be needed were Americans and successive generations who were willing
- to do their part through protests and struggle on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war
- and civil disobedience, and always at great risk to narrow the gap between the promise of our ideals
- and the reality of their time.
- And I think that is the key thing. Each generation, if our country is to continue to progress, is to
- become more perfect, each generation has to recognize the imperfections of our country. And they must
- work to fix them and to make progress. And once again, we probably won't ever get to the point of a
- perfect nation. But we have made progress in a lot of ways that made our nation more perfect.
- What is so disturbing about the time that we live in now is it seems like we're going backwards. And
- it's scary to kind of see maybe how quickly things can devolve. We always had the sense that our institutions
- were strong. And I don't think that we fully realized how much our democracy depends upon individual
- office holders, people of power and authority, of respecting the traditions
- and kind of the mores of our country. And what we've seen is you can have some things written on paper
- about how it's supposed to work, but if you don't have people who respect that, your nation can be at
- risk. And so our generation has to be willing to step forward because the key to our greatness as a
- country is recognizing our imperfections and trying to fix them. And really, if we look back, most every
- generation has had to face
- imperfections and sacrifice a lot to keep our country progressing forward, whether it's what's referred
- to as the greatest generation, fighting off fascism across the country and preserving our democracy
- from external threats, whether it's the people we spoke of in civil rights movement, women's rights
- movement, all those attempts out there. We each generation was willing to step up and do their part.
- And so the question is,
- you know, what shall we do in our generation? How will we try to make our country more perfect? And
- what should we focus on? And this is something where it's easy to kind of be paralyzed because there's
- so much going on. There's so many things that we need to correct as a country at this moment in time.
- And it's easy to become kind of, you know, paralyzed. Just thinking about where do I even begin? What
- do I confront?
- What do I work on? And as I look at it, we definitely have these most immediate things where we ask
- ourselves, you know, will our democracy continue to function? Will there be full voting rights? Will
- it become so hard to vote that a lot of people just can't or won't kind of work through the hurdles?
- I mean, there's a lot to think about just in the mechanics of our democracy. But I think that,
- While we certainly have to pay attention to that, and maybe that's the ultimate battle to be fought,
- I really think when I look at it as a state representative and from kind of talking to people and getting
- feedback from people, to me, the biggest threat right now to our nation is having an economy that seems
- to be leaving people behind. I think, to me, this is kind of the core problem that we face.
- going to have a brighter future as a country, we have to have an economy where everyone can prosper.
- And that means we have to do some hard work of fixing problems. And to me, the core problem that we
- have as a nation is the government has evolved to a point where it seems reluctant to invest in its
- own people.
- So at the state level, it's interesting because we can come up with hundreds of millions of dollars
- in short order to, in the name of economic development, support corporations and industries. And the
- theory is that that will kind of trickle down and ultimately benefit the population as a whole. But
- I think that after kind of seeing that for the last 40 years, you could ask yourself whether that's
- really the case.
- And so I think that what needs to happen, what I would see as the biggest imperfection to be corrected
- at the moment is to create, get back to a government that's willing to invest in its people. And that
- means not leaving people behind in our economy. And so I think these are fundamental areas that people
- are telling us they need help in and things that I think are important for our future. And the number
- one thing I think it starts with is education.
- All right, so we have to have a well-funded K through 12 public school system. And I think beyond educating
- our students, because the legislature is obsessed with workforce training and development. It's as if
- all the education system is supposed to do is make sure we have someone who can make a widget when the
- time comes.
- But I think that overlooks the real value, and again, the genius of our nation, of having a system of
- common schools, of putting in our very first state constitution in Indiana, there shall be a system
- of common schools. It took a while to make that a reality. But I think we missed the fact that when
- you have a diverse set of students coming from all different walks of life, different socioeconomic
- levels, and you have them in a school together, learning together, learning about each other, that is
- what melds your country together.
- And so that alone is an important value when it comes to education, as well as what some people might
- call book learning. And then when you get up to the college level, there's no reason we have to have
- a country in which you have to go into tremendous debt to afford to get a higher education. There's
- no reason why it has to be that way. The government could be funding our universities. We could create
- a system in which college students don't have to have all this debt burden.
- And I think that's another thing that would be very helpful, investing in our people. And I remember
- very clearly when there was a shift in supporting students going to college. So I began school here
- in 1980. And that was the very beginning of the Reagan administration. And up until that point,
- student loans, telegrants, which before that telegrants were called National Defense Student Loans,
- but the idea was that getting
- your citizens through college, getting a higher education, not only benefited that individual, but it
- benefited society as a whole. It would help us have a more educated, learned population, and this would
- end up advancing America as a whole. And in those 1980s, it kind of switched to, well, you know what?
- If you get a college degree, you'll probably earn more than those with only a high school degree, and
- you are going to be the main beneficiary
- of your education. Therefore, you should bear the burden of paying for your education because you are
- the one who will benefit. And so they took what was kind of a public good and they just turned it into
- a private benefit. And so we need to get away from that and actually invest in our students who want
- to go to school. Child care is just another example. We have an opportunity to ensure, one,
- that all children, no matter what their socioeconomic background,
- have the kind of early childhood education that's necessary to be able to advance and keep up and do
- well through K-12. All kinds of study and research about this and how good it is for that. And in the
- process, it helps our economy in general because now both parents can be in the workplace if they choose
- to do that. And so that's a greater benefit. And so that's an investment we can make. Health care, I
- don't even know where to begin on that.
- I personally think that we could do a lot better with a universal single payer system than kind of this
- crazy insurance system we have now. But others would argue with me about that. But the point is, as
- the United States of America, if we put our energy into solving this problem of how do we make sure
- that everyone has affordable healthcare, we're America. We have the power to innovate. We can figure this out.
- But we have to have the political will to do it. We have to be willing to invest in our people. And
- that's another area where we fail to do it. Housing is another issue. We can be helping people try to
- afford housing and make housing more affordable. So all of these things, I think, are examples of investments
- we could be making in people today. History shows that when we invest in our people, it strengthens
- our country. And so investment in individuals
- is an investment in America. It's an investment in our future. And that's what we should do. And I think
- if you look back, Franklin Roosevelt during the New Deal, during the Great Depression, really no social
- safety net, nothing. And at that time, there was the political will to do something about that, to tackle
- our problems. So they would look at these problems and say, we have senior citizens that are in poverty.
- So let's have a social security system. Let's create a system that will work.
- You know, all of the, I mean, kind of leveling the playing field for the average person, right? So the
- wealthiest people were benefiting from the stock market, there were no rules and regulations, and they
- figured out a way to, you know, have unemployment insurance, have workers' compensation, basically creating
- a social safety net. And then Lyndon Johnson, in The Great Society, he continued advancing that. What
- is our problem? We have a lot of seniors who don't have access to healthcare, so let's have a Medicare
- program. Let's have a Medicaid program.
- for those who are unable to get access to health insurance. And so essentially creating a more robust
- social safety net. And so certainly you can argue that all these programs are not perfect, that maybe
- there's a better, more innovative way to do it. But the point is, at times in our past, the government
- and the people demanding things from their government movements, social movements, got our problems
- addressed.
- in one fashion or another. And that's what we really need today. We need to have the generations that
- are on the planet at the moment working together to make our union more perfect. We need to create a
- movement that demands our governments at both the federal, state, and local level invest in our people.
- And I think that together, if we were to kind of build this movement, this political movement, we could
- generate the political will among our elected officials to
- actually focus on the problems that the public needs to have solved. And we owe it to the previous
- generations who did the hard work of getting us to this point, of making our nation more perfect, of
- doing the really hard things and trying to advance equality and the economic social safety net. All
- of that was done in the past and we ought to be able as the current generations be able to do this as
- well. We owe it to them that much.
- You know, the good news is, I hope, I don't think we have to fight a civil war to do it or maybe even
- spend a lot of time in jail. But we do need to speak up and we need to essentially seize political power
- through the constitutional systems we have in place so that we can redirect our government to do the
- things that need to be done to help our people. And I think that we can do that and not have to make
- the tremendous sacrifices that previous generations had
- maybe four. And so I think that in the process of doing that, we can also reinvigorate our democracy.
- Because so many people have checked out of the system, because they just feel it doesn't really matter
- who I elect, or this government is so far away and detached from me, there's no way that I can really
- impact it. Because I complain, I may even vote, but I don't seem to get my problems solved. And because
- of that, a lot of people are checking out.
- And so I think if we had a broad social movement seeking to solve these very basic problems of our citizens,
- I think not only would that give people a purpose and strive for, but I think it would build hope. And
- I think it would restore people's faith in our democratic system. And I think that is maybe the greatest
- benefit of all. Even if you fall a little short of solving the very real everyday problems of people,
- I think you can show them that there's a way forward. And it makes sense to participate in your government
- and have faith in your democratic system. So I would say now is the time for us to get started in building
- this new America, a more perfect union. And the important thing is, let's be able to say that we did
- our part to make America as perfect as possible. Thank you.
- Brooklyn, I would imagine after all the things that Matt said about education, you're not going to disagree
- too much. But Brooklyn's a student here at IU, and I heard her talk about her experiences, what she
- was told before she came to IU, her experiences at IU. And I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts
- on those questions again.
- that I'm a senior here at IU. I'm studying journalism and American studies. I grew up in Indiana. I
- got my education in Indiana, so I'm very aware of what the educational climate is here in the state.
- I first gave this speech at the AAUP meeting. It was to faculty and students. And so the goal of that
- speech, as well as my remarks today, is to sort of complicate what we've been taught about how education
- should function
- and to imagine the ways that education can and should be serving us. So I want to start today by asking
- what may seem like sort of a simple question, and that is, what does it mean to be a student? So almost
- all my life, that question has been answered by everyone except me. Growing up in a rural, conservative
- Indiana town of about 900 people, the top priority was not education, but rather acquiring skills
- that directly translated into a high paying career. This is what employers want to see, has been one
- of the most frequently repeated phrases throughout my education. Making myself profitable to an employer
- was always at the forefront of my mind during high school and college. Many people in my community didn't
- go to college or even graduate from high school. Instead, they worked at local RV factories that offered
- to pay them nearly $50 an hour right out of high school.
- And if my peers did choose to pursue higher education, they were encouraged by high school administrators
- to pick a degree program where a direct path to employment was emphasized. And I wanted all of this,
- too. I'm not going to stand up here and say that I was any different. I wanted a typical 9 to 5 job
- after I graduated from college. I didn't want to worry about my finances or work a laborious, physically
- demanding job like I saw both my parents do. Education, as it had been defined to me thus far,
- was about securing a job once the learning was over. And that's just it. At some point, I had to get
- serious and stop learning so I could enter the real world. Education was merely a stepping stone to
- that real world. Education itself had no value otherwise. But the secret that I held deep down was that
- I really loved learning. I used to tell my friends and my family and my teachers that I'd be content
- if I could just spend my entire life learning.
- So as I began college and worked toward my journalism degree, the secret sort of gnawed at me. It kept
- me up at night. I felt like I had to live a double life, fighting the one part of me that was being
- told to earn a degree in something practical, and the other part of me that really wanted to continue
- asking questions and building knowledge. Then I took a class in the Department of American Studies called
- What is America? And this class had nothing to do with my major in media studies. All it offered was
- a chance to do critical thinking about the United States.
- and to question the dominant narratives of American history. This class opened up an entirely new world
- to me. And for the first time, I got to define my education by asking questions and engaging in discussions
- that influenced my own personhood. For the first time, it offered a chance to see education as a tool
- for personal growth and a new way to relate to the world around me. I got to engage in the shaping of
- my own mind. So I took more classes like this,
- I read more books and I wrote more essays than I had ever done before. I expanded my mind by thinking
- critically of the world that surrounded me. And eventually these classes and the American Studies Department
- became my second major. They led to research opportunities that took me to the archives at the Sophia
- Smith Collection of Women's History in Northampton, Massachusetts, as well as an independent research
- project through the Center for Research on Race and Ethnicity in Society.
- I wrote a paper on incarcerated black women's personal narratives, such as poetry, personal essays,
- and music, and their significance in black feminist studies. I ended up combining my interests in media
- and American studies to create and produce a show with the local community radio station WFHB. I created
- episodes about the student-led protests at Dun Meadow and the subsequent silencing of those students'
- concerns by campus administrators.
- And I also created more historical episodes, including one about the origins and development of whiteness
- in America. For the first time, I felt like the shaper of my own mind, of my education. In developing
- my own consciousness, I worked to create more equitable spaces in my local community. And then the Indiana
- legislature passed HB
- know HB 1001 is the bill that forced university departments across the state of Indiana to consolidate
- and eliminate programs that did not meet a certain number of enrollment. So once again my education
- was in the hands of people who thought they knew what was best for me. Governor Braun through his act
- emphasized programs and departments that offered a direct ticket to employability
- Governor Ron said, quote, line up where the good jobs are that have the highest wages. Those are the
- degrees that are going to be the most important, end quote. My own American studies department has been
- deemed impractical by the state of Indiana. The degree which has offered me so many pathways to exciting
- and innovative research, to expanding my critical thinking skills, and to contributing knowledge to
- my local community. That is now considered disposable to state legislators because the value of education
- is only measured by its profitability. But if we judge education solely by its economic return, we may
- miss the importance of education as a tool to understand ourselves as Americans. Shouldn't I, as a human
- being, have the opportunity to understand who I am in relationship to my community, my country, and
- the rest of the world? Without the pursuit of a broad liberal arts education, my understanding of American
- history and culture would remain one-sided.
- I wouldn't know about the lives and ideas of so many important and formative Americans. Rather, my ignorance
- would remain an integral part to my formation as the perfect worker. Young people like me deserve the
- authority to shape our own minds, whether this leads to a nine to five career, the pursuit of knowledge,
- or something else entirely. But our state legislators are no longer allowing us the autonomy to make
- these decisions for ourselves. Their trust lies in profits and capital,
- than the young guys that would shape our very state, nation, and eventually the world. In total, 584
- degree programs like mine were merged, consolidated, suspended, or eliminated across Indiana's public
- colleges and universities. 584. And I understand that some of you may see this as an act of efficiency
- to streamline taxpayer dollars toward programs with higher enrollment numbers. You may even see low
- enrollment as evidence that something within the program or department
- isn't working. Purdue University's Provost Patrick Wolf described consolidation and elimination efforts
- as a type of accountability in which they strive to support taxpayers, employers, educators, and citizens
- in the best way possible. As a student who has lived in Indiana all her life, I've heard these arguments
- repeatedly. I understand that many across the state see efficiency and profitability as the top priorities
- for higher education. I, in fact, for the majority of my life, also saw higher education this way.
- But you're conditioned to believe that the primary goal of education is to obtain a high paying job.
- But I'm asking you today to imagine a different world with me. And I'm asking us to strive for a university
- that sees the development of young minds and the cultivation of critical thinking as its highest priority.
- While I'm not admonishing the importance of income and the means through which we all earn a living,
- I am instead suggesting that the state and universities recognize the importance of developing individuals
- with critical minds and well-rounded perspectives. I am advocating for a world in which the arts, humanities,
- and languages are not seen as secondary pathways or unnecessary degrees. We must remember that arts,
- humanities, and language programs offer skills beyond what can be simply measured. The soft skills offered
- by these degrees include communication, problem solving,
- empathy, ethical decision making, research analysis, creativity, and teamwork, all of which are also
- vital to the high wage jobs emphasized by the state. So let us question the state's push to employ numbers
- to distinguish the worthiness of a degree. While the state says this consolidation and elimination effort
- is to preserve taxpayer dollars, it's still unclear how much the state is saving in funding or whether
- any of these savings will even
- Once again, profits are used to justify the dismantling of vital liberal arts programs that provide
- students with the necessary skills for their own development and therefore their community's development.
- We must stop them from dismantling higher education in Indiana. Our future depends on young people like
- myself having access to a quality liberal arts education, one that helps us make sense of the world
- and our place in it. Caring about the preservation of our ability to guide our own education starts
- with standing alongside
- alongside those working to protect higher education in the state. I am asking all of us to make our
- voices heard. Education and equal access to it is essential for each and every one of us. Thank you
- so much. I'm going to say something that might
- brand my ideas as being heretical among my econ faculty colleagues. I'm actually convinced that if we
- offer education to young people and let them figure out what is in their own interest and let them ask
- their own questions and let them find their own answers, perhaps with the help of some old people with
- gray hair, that is actually good for the country.
- Because I'm convinced that if you let young people do that, they will find themselves in that is what
- makes America great. So thanks, Brooklyn. Sydney, you're up next.
- Thank you so much for being here. I hope you've enjoyed yourself thus far. My name is Sydney Zulek.
- I'm 23 years old and in 2023, I made Bloomington history by being the youngest person to ever be elected
- to the Bloomington City Council. It's always an honor for me to speak at events like this because I
- know how inspired I feel after leaving one. I love Bloomington and I am so grateful to have been given
- the chance to succeed here. But I am very, very aware that the same luxury is not afforded to most
- of the other post-graduates that we have in our community. My perfect Bloomington is one that every
- young person is given the same opportunities to succeed that I was given. The chance that I was given
- was truly once in a lifetime, but in a thriving community, opportunities are not rare, they are plentiful.
- We're not there yet, and that's okay, but let this be the moment that you feel called to action. When
- the world feels like a dark place,
- and our country's problems feel insurmountable, it is our local community that reminds us why life is
- worth living. The antidote to hate is very rarely more hate. We must instead fight back with joy. Sometimes
- that joy looks like marching and protesting. But most of that time, our joy is more subtle. It looks
- like volunteering for the breakfast shift at your local homeless shelter, hoping to ensure that the
- Our most vulnerable populations have food in their bellies. It looks like joining a city or county commission
- and advocating for the issues that you care about. And it looks like running for office, taking up space
- in rooms where many of our perspectives are often discarded. There are over 60 elected officials in
- this town. Some positions are flashy, some are less so, but they're still critical to our infrastructure.
- Not every elected official is dynamic.
- Some are soft-spoken. Some are abrasive. Very few are a happy medium. But there's no specific sound
- or style that comes with running for or holding office. And most of us didn't study political science,
- myself included. Instead, we're educators. We're doctors. We're lawyers, tradesmen, farmers, stay-at-home
- parents. The only thing that we all have in common is that we are brave enough to try. Brave enough to fight.
- in some cases. So once upon a time, I was approached about running like many of my colleagues have been.
- It wasn't something I ever expected for myself until someone else believed in me. The people in my life
- knew that I was capable of becoming something more. And so they pushed me to do it. So just in case
- someone or a few someones in this room hasn't heard it yet or needs to hear it, I am going to take this
- opportunity to say to all of you, run for
- You don't need to be fearless. You don't need to have all of the answers. But I believe that you're
- here today because you know that the United States of America has a better future in store. And we need
- more leadership to get there. So run, fight, win, and serve your communities. So for those
- who are apprehensive or feel like they're not ready, I get it. I've been there. But we must look no
- further than former President Harry Truman, who shared his experience as a new politician.
- In his own words, he says, I remember when I first came to Washington. For the first six months, you
- wonder how the hell you ever got here. For the next six months, you wonder how the hell the rest of
- them ever got here. Now, I can't speak for others, but I have had a very similar experience to former
- President Truman in that regard. And so we all have our doubts. But I have to encourage each of you
- to take a chance on yourself.
- you will never know your full potential until it is realized. And I promise that you are much more powerful
- than our education system has led you to believe you are. It would be my honor to help you step into
- your power. So for anyone who would like to contact me, my cell phone number is 614-448-8154. That is
- 614-448-8154. No one got it the first time. I'm more than happy to sit down and discuss
- with anybody what our community offers and where someone might best step into their power here. So I'll
- leave you with this. Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to ever be elected to the United States
- Congress, put it best, service is the rent that we pay for the privilege of living on this earth. Well,
- y'all, rent is due. So whatever that service looks like to you,
- encourage you to be brave in your pursuit raise your expectations for yourself get involved make a difference
- and above all else raise your voice because I would really like to hear what you have to say and I imagine
- a lot of other folks would too so thank you very much for your time thanks for being here and I hope
- you have a
- I think it's really hard to end in a more positive and joyful and cheerful attitude. Thank you so much.
- And I guess the rent is due. There's an old wisdom that goes back thousands of years, which goes something
- like this. It is upon us to start the work, and there are plenty of opportunities to start the work.
- And it also says it's not upon us to complete the work. So Matt, you said it's going to take some time.
- They're not going to be perfect. They're not going to complete it. It is not our duty to finish the
- work, but then neither are we free to neglect it. I think that sums up what all of our fabulous speakers
- told us tonight. So you have a chance to have a conversation. I have a microphone. I imagine some of
- you will have questions. I will imagine some of you have comments. Feel free to speak your mind.
- When I thought about this, in my mind, there's too much divisiveness in this country, too much name
- calling. This is supposed to be a completely positive, hopeful, non-divisive event. I think it has been
- so far. So each one of us should be free to speak up. And if you want to have a comment or a question,
- I'll hand you the microphone. Perhaps you want to tell us your name. And go at it.
- My name's Angela Blum, and I guess priorities, and I guess it goes to you, Matt. I'm wondering, you
- started with education, so is that the number one, I mean, healthcare, childcare, all those things,
- and it's hard to pick right now where we need to get going, but I'm just wondering if you think it's,
- education, or who you feel first? Yeah, I think that, I think to me education is the key because you
- can talk about education as a more formal, like earning degrees, advancing through the process, but
- I think education also includes informing people.
- about what their government is doing and what is impacting their lives, and then also providing them
- with the information they need to figure out how do I get involved or how do I change it. So education
- on both those levels is really important. But I think to get people engaged, because I know right now
- people are like, will our democracy survive? What will be happening in the next two election cycles?
- Will someone manage to subvert the system to the point where it doesn't function anymore?
- And so you might say, well, why are you worrying about education, housing, and all that stuff? Because
- our very democracy is at stake. But I think the reason why our democracy is fragile is because so many
- people have checked out. And so I think you have to give people a reason to want to get involved and
- to want to make our system really work and to fight through
- the barriers that are being raised at being able to vote, whether it's getting the right ID, getting
- registered, showing up to vote in the right place. I mean, there are all these twists and turns just
- to show up and cast your vote. And so to get people to be willing to learn how to fight through that
- and make sure their vote counts, you have to give them a good reason to vote. And so I think this idea
- of let's have an America, let's have an Indiana where we invest in our people and we address these real
- direct problems
- face, I think that might engage them to get involved in democracy. And then you have the power of numbers.
- And you have people involved. And so I think that's how you end up turning things around. I have a question.
- This is a question for Brooklyn. I wanted to ask about, my name is Kate Steger.
- And I wanted to ask you, as a future journalist, I talked about having the power to develop your own
- critical thinking. And as this future journalist, I wanted to ask you about social media. And I want
- to know what your thoughts are on how the algorithms are shaping our ability to think and what you think
- you can do about it as a journalist.
- how you will handle that as journalists. And that's the question on every journalist's mind right now.
- Algorithms are really reshaping how young people are getting their news. And I think part of what Matt
- was talking about was needing to increase our education is also to increase our media literacy. Media
- literacy is vital for everyone, not just young people, but especially in the wake of algorithms. It's
- really important that we understand how to fact check
- how to check multiple sources, how to verify the information we're getting. Where do journalists even
- get their information? Obviously, those are things that were taught in the media school, but those are
- vital things that every American should have access to. And so I guess as a journalist, people want
- to be stuck in their algorithms. There's not a whole lot we can do about that. But I guess my priority
- as a journalist is always
- just putting out stories that I think are vital to local communities. Covering local communities is
- super important. There's a lot of news deserts that are happening across the state and across the country.
- And so trying to fill those news deserts with things that are impacting local people is really, really
- important in the age of social media. That kind of goes with what
- City was saying, too, about the importance of the local community. So I really appreciate that focus.
- I feel a little bit, I'm going into conversation mode here, but I feel like that's where we have the
- only power. Outside of our road, we live in this local community, and we have to use our power in the
- local community. So I appreciate that.
- like this has been mentioned. But something I've been awakened to is this AIPAC, this Israel money.
- That has to stop. I am just, the more I learn about it, we give all our money to this rogue state, and
- the state is taking us down into the gutter. I mean, we're at war now because of that state. How does
- that money
- How do we stop that? Because it's infected everything in our country. There's not probably a politician
- that doesn't take TAPAC or some form of money. I thought they were going to try to curb how many of
- these groups can come into the White House and these lobbying groups. Stop that crap.
- I don't know how to get the government to wake up because it's sick. We have a very infected, sick government
- right now. And it's painful for me to see because it's hurting these young people. These young people
- don't have the opportunity that we had. And it's sad because we can do so much better
- But if we're going to put politicians in there, one thing that I demand now is no corporate money. That
- has to stop. Because if you take corporate money, then you have to bow down to these people. If I was
- to take money from you and you said, oh, by the way, I'm going to help you with this. And then after
- a while, you said, but by the way,
- I need you to help me now. It's sick. So how do we stop that? Education is wonderful, but these poor
- students are in debt up through their eyeballs. Why can't we have free education in this country? Israel
- has free education. Why can't we? So anyway, I've got burrs up my butt. I'm sorry.
- I'm Jenny Bass, and I'm actually, Gerhard invited me to come on behalf of, who's your action?
- And let me just, some of us here are members, and glad to see you, and I know that Matt has seen us
- at the State House, and I'm really inspired by the words that you use about the more perfect democracy,
- more perfect union, and how do we do that in India?
- How do we take it down a notch and include people who haven't been included in this process? Education,
- health care, harm reduction, these things that are so important to people in their homes, and yet they're
- not voting. They haven't been included, and they feel left out. So one of the things Hoosier Action
- does is to create community organizations just for Indiana people, just for Hoosiers,
- to give people the tools so that we can go to the state house and talk to our state representatives.
- And we can go to Washington and talk to our federal representatives. And we don't care if you voted
- for Trump or if you voted for Biden. We care about what are the issues that affect you in your home,
- in your community, and how are we going to make a better Indiana? And how are we going to come together
- in small, rural communities and protect our
- hospitals, protect our own health care, protect SNAP benefits for children. So it's really a little
- more basic. And it's a little more about how it affects people and directly in their families. And how
- do we get those people to participate? They may not be going to college right now. And that's a lot
- of people. And remember that 40% of people
- or maybe over 40%, you know better than I do, of our voting population here is independent. They're
- not Democrats or Republicans. So how do we encourage people to speak up and to represent their own best
- interests? So that's what we're doing at Who's Your Action by organizing small communities and then
- doing some more global or more statewide work. So I encourage you to get involved, and I'll leave these
- So this is an example of how enthusiastic Hoosier Action members are. I was going to ask those members
- of local groups to speak on their behalf later. But enthusiasm is always a good thing. So we have one
- representative, Jenny, from Hoosier Action. We also have a representative from the League of Women Voters
- who have been in the business of informing voters for a long, long time. And then we have two other
- groups here.
- and they can all say a few things. There are going to be sign-up sheets outside. So if you want to get
- more information, or if you're convinced you want to jump right in and become a member and help out,
- you can do that too. So League of Women Voters. Good evening. My name is Marion, and I am on the leadership
- team for the League of Women Voters. And Jenny actually gave us the perfect segue. Our mission is to
- empower people to vote.
- We encounter a lot of people at fairs, at town events, who think that they are registered to vote, and
- in fact, they are not, or they're registered to vote somewhere else. I think a week before, they can
- go to the license branch and sign up, and that is not happening either. So we, on a regular basis,
- have events where we register people to vote or help people to get registered to vote. We also, during
- election years, sponsor forums where we invite candidates from both parties to answer questions. We
- have our meetings in public places, like schools, the library,
- For example, there is a meeting at the library on April 14th. And it would be great to see all of you
- there. And here, it's a forum where all the candidates from one party have agreed to join us and ask
- questions about science, technology, and the environment.
- A few days ago, we had one with similar or the same candidates talking about the state of healthcare
- in this state. It was enlightening. There are entire counties in this state where if you call 911 after
- six o'clock in the evening, nobody comes because there is no emergency room. There are no rural hospitals.
- And at the end of the day, the only way we will change this picture is if we get people to vote. League
- of Women Voters is a nonpartisan organization. We have Democrats and Republicans on our board. So we
- do not endorse particular candidates. We do endorse particular positions about health care,
- housing, childcare, education, but we do not endorse particular candidates. And our current challenge
- in this state is that when we sponsor forums, it is more likely than not, it is only the current opposing
- party that shows up. So we are not able to present
- clear picture to the people who are interested in information and there is another item that we will
- not change unless we vote in significantly larger numbers than we currently do. If we have representatives
- who are so sure that their party will win every district but one or two in this entire state, nothing
- will change.
- So again, we are the League of Women Voters. We hold quarterly meetings at St. Thomas Lutheran Church,
- where we invite local speakers to come and talk to us about issues that affect us as voters and us as
- citizens. And they are open to the public. They are on the second Tuesday.
- I want to say once a quarter, if you log onto the website for the League of Women Daughters Bloomington
- Monroe County, you can see all the events that we sponsor and all the meetings that we have where we
- invite local speakers. I would greatly appreciate if you spread the word and participate. Thank you
- very much. Thanks. We also have,
- We're presented to you from two groups that are perhaps more specialized focus. So one of those is the
- AUHI. And Annabel, you're going to say a few things about what AUHI stands for and what you guys do.
- Hi everyone, I'm here with Ahi. We're advocates for the Unhoused and Housing Insecure at the University.
- We're a relatively new club, so we try to get students involved specifically on housing issues
- in Bloomington. So we started just a few months ago and we've been able to build a pretty impressive
- base of students who are really, really great. They are really getting engaged in how to not only
- work towards short-term solutions towards housing issues in Bloomington by volunteering at the Overnight
- Shelter a lot, but also towards really long-term sustainable solutions. So we've been able to advocate
- a bit against recent legislation that is really going to harm a lot of people. And we're really interested
- in how people can work towards these sustainable solutions in our community. So it's been great. I'm
- excited to see where it goes.
- really great students, really great people to work with. So it's been exciting and good. Yeah. I wanted
- to ask you how you're working with the city and what connections you have with the city. Yeah.
- Right now, since we are pretty new, we don't have a lot of connections with the city. Personally, I
- know more people. And I think people in our club do know people. But I think looking forward, our club
- members would really like to get more involved.
- I think it would be great to have people at least showing up to meetings where housing is discussed.
- I think that is very needed advocating for or against different policies and also potentially working
- with the city through meetings to think about how we can better implement solutions or respond
- to legislation. So since we are pretty new, our basis is low, but I think that can be expanded.
- The other group is trees, about trees. They're called Canopy. So John, do you want to say a few things
- about Canopy? Sure. Thanks. Yeah, I think I've spent the second half of my career engaging communities,
- mostly through the arts. But right now I'm working with a small nonprofit that's doing amazing work
- here in Bloomington. It's CanopyBloomington.org.
- And we are trying to build a more sustainable and equitable urban forest here throughout the city. And
- we find neighborhoods that need trees the most. And we go in and we try to meet every single resident
- within those neighborhoods and convince them to take free trees for the yard. We're grant and donor
- funded. We have two more big plantings this spring, this Saturday and next Saturday. Or we'll plant
- a couple hundred trees. So if you're interested in planting trees, check us out on the website. I also
- have a sign up here.
- Thanks. Thanks, John. And the last group is more broadly focused. I think it has something to do with
- resistance and singing. So Kate, you want to talk about it? Or are you sisters going to fight it out?
- I can speak and she can sing. But we're going to split it up. Singing resistance is a movement of singers who are
- committed to protecting and caring for our communities and protecting us from growing authoritarianism.
- And it really started in Minnesota this past winter. It's a kind of new movement. But it has its roots
- in very old movements. So civil rights battles across the world and across the country have always used
- singing and music to
- sustain themselves. And Bloomington just started a chapter. There are 250 chapters. In two months, there
- were pop-up chapters all across the country, 250 of them now. And Bloomington has one, and we're just
- getting started. And the idea is that we will learn and teach and sing simple songs as part of political
- actions and public actions to protect people, to build community,
- to make our local communities stronger. So with that, I said that, and feel good, and bring joy, and
- have something to do with protest other than the law of the F bomb. So here you go. Angela's going to
- lead us in a song. The other thing that I really like about singing resistance is that it is
- for non-professionals. I am not a professional singer. It's been years since I've sung in a choir, but
- I love to sing.
- Today, I spent a lot of time with my two and a half year old grandson, and we did a lot of singing.
- And the earworm that is in my brain right now is, we are the dinosaurs, march, march. We are the dinosaurs,
- we make the roof flat. And so, you know, that's not, I mean, if we hope to sing other songs like that,
- we were at the Middle King's Rally, and there were a lot of folks
- You know, there are so many issues. So tonight, I just would like to invite you to sing with me on just
- a short song that is one that Serena Partridge has been singing in Minnesota. And it goes like this.
- The future is calling. It's calling for vision.
- And the people will sing along. And the singing will make us strong. So try that with me. We'll do it
- just a piece at a time. It goes like this. And there are several people in this group that already have
- been coming to some of the little gatherings. And we hope to have smaller gatherings of people where
- we can discuss the issues and support each other on the issues that we think are
- are important. So it goes like this. The future is calling. The future is calling. It's calling for
- vision. It's calling for vision. And we will sing along. And we will sing along.
- make us strong. And the singing will make us strong. So let's try it with another word. The future is
- calling, is calling for trees. The future is calling, is calling for trees. Let's do it again with another
- word. The future is calling,
- is calling for action. The future is calling, is calling for action. Or the future is calling, is calling
- for votes. The future is calling, is calling for votes. Or the future is calling,
- is calling for housing the future is calling is calling for housing or the future is calling is calling
- for education the future is calling is calling for education and we will sing along and we
- This is probably a great way to stop. Singing for housing,
- for trees, for voting, for action, for education. Even though I was seeing a little bit off key, but
- it's not about that so much, I suppose. Thanks for coming. I'm going to hang around for a while. I guess
- I would even be tempted. There's probably a place close by that serves decent German beverages. So if
- you're old enough, I would love to just
- and formally. So thanks for coming. I think this has been taped. And my understanding is the tape will
- be available, shall we say, by tomorrow afternoon. So if I said anything really stupid, you can find
- my mistakes there. But it's going to be available. Again, thanks for coming. And as you heard, there's
- going to be lots and lots of opportunities and chances to make Bloomington, Indiana, and this country a better
- That's the spirit of this evening. Thank you.