CLINTON
TRUMP
America Waits. DEMS: Small group, big impact. BY EDDIE BYNOG DIGEST NEWS EDITOR
For the past 3 months, students may have noticed a group of individuals perched outside the John B. Cade library underneath a small white tent passing out fliers and registering students to vote. This has been the work of The Democratic Society, a student led organization working towards creating an environment that mobilizes students politically. For the past 78 days, with the exception of weekends, its members have stood in the heat, rain and wind promoting their initiative, “After The Trend.” The DEMS website, www. afterthetrend.org, describes their initiative as one that seeks to create a collegiate and academic experience centered around activism, civic engagement and community service. Their goals are simple: to build consistent constituents.
“More than anything we want people to learn how to be accountable citizens that hold officials accountable,” said Adjunct faculty member and Advisor for The Dems, Angelle Bradford. Bradford, who is an Ohio State Alumna and Baton Rouge Native, became involved with the DEMS after returning to Southern to work on her Masters. As an advisor, Bradford helps oversee the day to day operation of the DEMS, which is also run by President Kayla Clancy, VicePresident Destinee Jordan and 50 other members. “We brought back DEMS and changed the name because we wanted it to be more civic engagement and community service and less political party or democrat endorsement related,” Bradford went on to add, “we wanted something that was consistent and strategic and on campus at all times.”
To help with their initiatives, the DEMS partnered with the Student Government Association to register students to vote and ensure that they take part in voting this election season. The result was the DEMS successfully registering more than 500 Southern University students in the hopes that they will participate in today’s Presidential elections. Bradford said she felt it was important to register students to vote because of their unique position in not only their communities, but the world at large. “We’re the most vulnerable group” said Bradford, “When the economy falls apart we’re the ones who don’t get jobs.” Senior Biology Major, Alexia Mosby, is a volunteer for the Dem society and spoke about
See DEM SOCIETY page 3
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AND A&M COLLEGE, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA