Agents of Change: College Democrats Launch New Campus Group

By Auburn Mann

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time we are the ones we've been waiting for we are the change that we seek"

                                                                                                              -President Barack Obama

      One up and coming organization on campus is certainly living out these words by pursuing change. The College Democrats are taking Bowie State University by storm. The newly founded program held its first meeting Sept. 16 in the Wiseman Center.

     Led by the group's president Leslie Hall who (also chief of Staff for the Student Government Association) opened up the meeting with the core values and beliefs of the club: all people should be able to freely advocate ideas and beliefs without fear of persecution; all people should have adequate health care, and all people should be able to receive a quality education, pursue career goals, participate in the democratic process and have a chance to achieving the "American Dream" regardless of race, religion or gender. 

    Members discussed plans to visit the White House and the U.S. Capitol as well as play a major role in the campaign for Vice Chairman of the Prince George's County Council Thomas E. Dernoga, who will defend his seat this fall.

Aside from the campaign action, the group is also expecting other influential politicians and community leaders to appear and give words of advice: specifically the current White House Chief of Staff Rham Emmanuel, who formerly served in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 5^th District of Illinois.

            The College Democrats want to help create a more tolerant and understanding campus environment by initiating forums where various ethnic and religious campus organizations can communicate their needs, while simultaneously, hear the needs of their counterparts, thereby learning something about their fellow Bulldogs.

            The group also intends to be active in the needs of the community beyond BSU. This year, group members said they will participate in a blanket drive for the homeless hosted by the Kwanza Kitchen in Washington.

            The College Democrats have also set their sights on forming a debate team where they would take on other schools through interscholastic competition over argumentative political discussion. In fact, they have already accepted an invitation to debate the Howard University College Republicans.

            Hall, the group's president said, "The political awareness on campus will hopefully be greater from all of our efforts to empower our fellow students to be change agents."