teenpowerpolitics.com is a site for you to figure out ways to get things done the way you want.
Not enough others are standing in for you to preserve your rights. The next generation up isn't voting enough. Older generations are using small numbers of you as the scapegoat for societal problems they need to fix. It's your time to step in and help yourselves - even before you can vote.
You've seen the numbers: You're almost 15% of the US population. You have $153 Billion spending power. You have passion, energy and a generational sense of what's right.
Number power ... Economic power ... Persuasion power.
Wield them intelligently and democracy - the system that makes us able to do what we do and that is flexible enough to change if we need it to - can only benefit.
Teen Power Politics is about issues affecting you.
It's about resources and finding info to make change.
It's about finding others to work with.
It's about politics: from the crack in your sidewalk to whether you can walk that sidewalk freely and not get stopped without reason.
And it's about a book to help you do all of the above:
TEEN POWER POLITICS: MAKE YOURSELF HEARD ( September 2000) is an issue oriented approach for you to get engaged in a practical way in the civil and political society that's already making decisions affecting you.
And you'll find that TPP is not boring! It's stacked with cartoons, quotes from everyone from Thomas Jefferson to Frank Zappa (Dweezil's dad), tools and more websites for activism and advocacy and strong examples of very real - and not perfect - young people who have tackled issues through protest, through formal means, and through individual acts.
Here's what others have already said about TPP
This
book will teach you how to be heard and be counted. A must!
Mario Velasquez, Executive Director, Rock The Vote
Whether
they're old enough to vote or not, young readers of TEEN POWER POLITICS
will be motivated to speak up and get involved in issues that affect their
lives. Filled with useful information and inspiring stories of powerful
teens, this book is a wakeup call for young people and a reminder that
they don't
need to wait until they're "grown up" to make a difference in the world.
Christina Ferrari, Managing Editor , Teen People
When people ask me what I'm going to do first now that I've turned 18 I tell them that I'm going to vote. It surprises them, but it's true. I'm proud to be an American and I love the idea that my one vote can affect the future of my country. Britney Spears
All
progressive or radical change throughout history has involved teenagers.
From the French and American revolutions, to the struggles for women's,
minorities and worker's rights in the United States, to the liberation
struggles throughout the third world, young
people have courageously stood up for justice and freedom throughout history.
Tom Morello, Rage Against the Machine
TEEN
POWER POLITICS understands that teens not only have rights, but the energy
and determination to exercise them for the good of all of us. I applaud
Sara, she is a true advocate for teens.
Kimberly Kirberger, Author, Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul
& Teen Love Series
Let's get moving.
TEEN
POWER POLITICS:
MAKE YOURSELF HEARD
$9.95 for the paperback The Millbrook Press ISBN: 0-7613-1391-5
$24.90 for a school & library edition hardcover Twenty-First Century Books ISBN 0-7613-1307-9
available at your neighborhood bookstore or at
BookSense.com (for your local independent bookstore)
The Millbrook Press (for library binding only)
If you'd like to email me a story of something you or someone you know has done, a good site to put on the resource list or something you think other teens should know (including any poetry that you think will motivate others!) , please email me at sjboyers@teenpowerpolitics.com
This
website and all information as compiled in it is (c) 2000 Sara Jane Boyers
Designers are: Maureen Warder & Alex Maloutas
