Most Americans are well aware that in 2000, the presidential election was decided by 537 votes. From hanging chads to the hourly updates of the manual recount, this story was obsessively covered by the mainstream press. However, what wasn’t covered was what journalist Greg Palast discovered that thousands of primarily minority voters were scrubbed from the voter registry in Florida and prevented from potentially changing the course of America’s turbulent last four years.
By the spring of 2004 all around the country, groups from both sides of the aisle were organizing and activating plans to impact the coming presidential election from MoveOn to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Here at GNN we were finishing our book, True Lies , two related documentary projects and barely had enough time for our own attempt of an online voter registration campaign. Through Palast’s reporting and our own investigations into electronic voting machines and the crossover campaign that defeated Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, we became increasingly aware of the fallibility of elections and the fragile state of America’s most fundamental democratic process. We also knew the potential power of the youth vote. With more than 55 million voters between the ages of 18 and 35, this demographic group accounts for 36% of the total eligible voters in the U.S. And as witnessed in 2000 it all comes down to who shows up to vote on election day.
So on the eve of one of the most spirited elections in recent times, it’s time to try and turn out the vote. As a music video director, ideas for videos usually come independent of the song and are then adapted to fit the timing and lyrics of the featured track. I initially developed a concept for this video in June 2004 and contacted Interscope shortly after to find out what artists in their roster would be releasing albums near the election. The goal was to make a video that inspired young people to vote because they too often disregard it as a powerless exercise. To show them that political decisions do impact their daily lives and that voting is the most powerful act we all have to voice our opinion and effect change. And to educate and reiterate the point that whether or not people want to accept it, there are forces in play that attempt to suppress the youth and minority vote.
When I got the callback that our favorite conspirator of controversy, Eminem would be releasing an album in November, I knew we had the potential to say something that would be heard by the masses. And after hearing the song later that month it seemed Mr. Mathers had also been in the lab concocting his own plans for the election and it was precisely the anthem I had been looking for. So with less than six weeks to deliver we put together a team and forgot about what it meant to sleep. In order to produce animation for a song that runs 5:20 in just over 5 weeks we were going to need a lot of green tea and mate and a little help from Marshall himself. This video was made possible by a team of artists who came together inspired by a song and video that might be able to effect the next four years of all of our lives.
Two years ago, this video would not have been approved by a single record label. A year ago it would never had the possibility of being played on television. But with the changing tide of public sentiment marked by the success of our last video for Chronic Future, an anti-war message that made it into rotation on TRL we think it might just have a chance.
Now, it’s up to the broadcasters. Will they ban the top selling musical artist for being anti-establishment while they allow other propaganda to air? Or will they finally allow an artist who has the courage to speak out to take center stage and utilize the airwaves for something other than typical celebrity fodder?
Stay tuned here for updates on the unfolding antics and remember to show up and vote for you candidate of choice on November 2nd.
so i keep starting up and stopping xanga entries. you'd probably think i'm a crazy person for trying to formulate stuff to put in here. i think i am.
i think this "final" copy for tonight entry will address this stopping a starting.
1) i'm not really feelin those "this was my day. this is what i did. this is who i did it with" kind of entries right now. for whatever reason, i'm not sure. but lately, thinking about how my days are filled with classes and meetings and more events and more meetings and midterms and homework has depressed me. it makes me tired and makes my brain hurt. i look back and think "eh, it wasn't sooooo bad. i came out of it a better person? maybe? next time, i'll handle it better."
but that never happens.
i'm seriously stuck in some rut. trends repeat. thoughts cycle. actions remain unchanged.
which lead me to "starting & stopping" reason 2...
2) i keep writing about the same damn things. it either goes ...
"uh. life sucks. it's hard. i can't keep up. classes are rough. too many meetings. no time. there's never any time. i don't have time to study. i'll never get into stanford. jessie spano-type freakout sessions!"
or
"awwww.... i love chris. i love him sooooooo much. muah muah muah!"
or
"i can't juggle these 2 lives at home and at school. my friends don't mix. my family doesn't work into my life here. they're too seperate. duality is not fun!"
or
"aw man. today was great. i feel so empowered and happy and passionate about (insert pil-org, student group, activity, event here)"
or
"insert something really really really random like a quote or quiz or graph or something here"
maybe i'm overanalyzing this xanga stuff. maybe this is just what they're/it's/mine is made of. whatever.
i don't know what direction i want my xanga/blog to take and that's kinda frustrating... but then again, do these even need direction? should there be direction? should these be directionless? or just the direction of where my life is going right now?
yeah, maybe it's the last one.
and so that's probably why my entries are more scattered right now, and why i so desire to write something with substance or show thought beyond a list of random items.
i'm not sure in what direction i'm moving. hopefully it's forward... heck, i don't know.
i guess... right now, i'm trying to become more of a reflective person. but it's just hard when the world is so quick paced. i really admire people who keep there cool and can rock the academics and student groups or jobs or whatever on the side.
reflection is hard, when you feel you don't have time for it. yeah?
and a lot of the time, the things i think about just kinda trail off into nowhere or that certain train-of-thought is abruptly derailed by a telephone call, or a meeting, or homework. lol.
if for one day, i could shut out all distractions (family, friends, chris, school, clubs, telephones, email, internet, tv, jarring noises like the construction and squeeky brakes from AC transit, and anything else that falls into this category), could i achieve this reflective zone that i'm searching for?
who knows...
...and now to finish some physics homework. but i'll leave you with this thought: "There's gotta more to life than chasing down every temporary high
to satisfy me."
so at last night's PAA meeting, i said my past or present dream job was to just be a good homemaker-housewife. nah. i just couldn't think of anything to say. but i've had some time to think today and here's a list of some cool dream jobs o' mine--
1) 1st female president of the US (actually... i don't need to be the first. i'd rather be part of a long line of strong women leaders!)
2) Personal shopper to the stars!
3) Dancer/Dance Instructor
4) Someone that works with kids to develop talent (song, music, instrument, movement, acting)
5) High School Principal
6) go to the Philippines and use my degrees (yep, degrees) in Civil Engineering to help the country
anniversary "midnight" rendezvous
one o'clock alarm
remembering the first time
warm under covers and half-asleep
from behind him he pulled out
a calla lily & four red roses
(yep. that beats the "8 months of friendship and 4 days of something more" bouquet)
*sigh* what did i ever do to deserve this one. thank you God for this blessing (this person) in my life.
posted by Rita at 
but i'll leave you with this thought: "There's gotta more to life than chasing down every temporary high
