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Bennett addresses College Student Activists

11/18/07 · 8:01 pm :: posted by Doug Bennett

Press Release:

This past Veteran's Day, Massachusetts Politician and former Nantucket Selectman and County Commissioner Doug Bennett addressed College students from across Massachusetts gathered at Boston University for "The Race to 2008," an activist training seminar put together by the Massachusetts College Democrats and College Republicans to get their campuses active and energized about the social and political issues from now until November 2008. "The Race to 2008" took place last weekend in Boston from November 10^th and 11th.

Among the impressive array of speakers included Arshad Hasan, the Executive Director for Democracy for America, Elie Wiesel, the Nobel Laureate and Holocaust Survivor, and U.S. Senator John Kerry.

Prior to the conference, Kerry said, "Americans have a right and responsibility to speak up, speak out, and get involved in our own democracy. From the fight over the war in Vietnam, to the civil rights movement, to the environmental movement, again and again, students have been the first to take a stand and in doing so write history of our country."

Senator Kerry spoke during the opening remarks, Bennett who was a late addition to the group of speakers spoke during the closing remarks.

Bennett said, "Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in 1933, "There is nothing to fear, but fear itself." I say that this is true today. It's time for a new generation to step up and that generation is us, the September 11^th Generation. As our parents dealt with the Assassination of President Kennedy, and our grandparents had World War II, our generation witnessed the world change on September 11^th, 2001." Bennett later urged the students that the way that for this change to come about the "September 11th Generation" must begin "1. Running for political office, and 2. Recruit new voters."

The following is Bennett's Veteran's Day Address at "Race to 2008."

Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in 1933, "There is nothing to fear, but fear itself." I say that this is true today. It's time for a new generation to step up and that generation is us, the September 11^th Generation. As our parents dealt with the Assassination of President Kennedy, and our grandparents had World War II, our generation witnessed the world change on September 11^th, 2001.

This event has made our generation see that along with the fact that our parents, the baby boomers who are retiring, that people our age have begun to feel the pains of our economic reality. Our education costs are skyrocketing, rent no matter where you live in Massachusetts is soaring, and additionally, it is tough to find good paying jobs to match our abilities. Internationally, we have World War taking place all across the globe, and it is our generation whose blood spills on the deserts of Iraq and on the mountain summits in Afghanistan.

This is why I ask all of you to take charge of our government, whether it's locally, throughout our commonwealth, or even nationally...We, the September 11^th Generation need to: 1. Run for Office, and 2. Recruit more people from our generation to vote.

In the November 6^th, Boston elections only 13.5% of the voters came to the polls in New England's biggest city. Very few people between ages 18-40 voted. This is an amazing statistic for the fact that 1 out of every 3 Boston Residents is between 18-30 years old.

However, we can change this and for our generation to begin taking charge of our government, I again say that we must run for office and we must recruit new voters so that issues that our important to us can be addressed whether its: 1. War and Peace on this Planet, 2. the Environment, 3. Jobs, 4. Equal Rights for All, and 5.Affordabilty in Massachusetts.

So I conclude like Winston Churchill by saying: "Come, then, lets us go forward together, with our united strength!"

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About This Blog

Doug Bennett lives in Boston and is running for City Councilor at-Large in 2009. He is a former Selectmen of the Town of Nantucket and a County Commissioner of Nantucket County. He is currently employed as the Case Specialist for the Suffolk County Criminal Trial Court and he can be reached through email.

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