Obama Seeks Votes Amid Fervor at Howard U.: Draws Enthusiasm of Black Students but Few Volunteers

[DeepModem Mom]

WP: Obama Seeks Votes Amid Fervor
Senator Draws Enthusiasm of Black Students but Few Volunteers
By Krissah Williams
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 29, 2007; Page A06


Barack Obama, with Southeastern University President Charlene Drew Jarvis and Howard President H. Patrick Swygert, said at Howard: "I ask you to remember how far we've come, but I urge you to think hard about where we need to go." (By Michel Du Cille/Washington Post)

Students at Howard University pressed together on the curb yesterday, waving at Sen. Barack Obama as his black SUV raced up the block.

In a fiery speech focused on racial inequities in the criminal justice system, Obama (D-Ill.) called them the "Joshua generation" that would lead the nation into a promised land. His 30-minute speech was interrupted by applause a dozen times, a show of the embrace he has received from young African Americans, particularly on college campuses, where his image is shaped as much by the mainstream media as by hip-hop artists and magazines.

Vibe dubbed him "B-Rock" in its cover article this month; popular rappers Common and Talib Kweli have dropped his name in their lyrics; and R&B singer Usher Raymond introduced him at a recent fundraiser, building an excitement factor with young voters.

"As a black man, he has a perspective that has long been unheard and disregarded," said Howard student Antonio Kizzie, 20, who was waiting on the curb for a last glimpse of the candidate.

The campaign's challenge will be converting the excitement of Kizzie and other students into votes. Candidates who have charmed young voters in the past have largely failed when it came to mobilizing them. Interviews with two dozen students as they went back to school at three black colleges found support for Obama, but with summer breaks having ended only recently, the campaign's fledgling student organizations do not match the enthusiasm. About 18 students showed up for the first meeting of Students for Barack Obama at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta. The group's volunteer coordinator Kevin Heard, 19, was disappointed with the showing....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/28/AR2007092801862.html?hpid=topnews

[goclark]

1. Go Obama!