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Campaign aims to end corporate influence in elections
By Katie Anderson
On November 21, 2012
In the shadow of this past presidential election cycle, Public Citizen's Democracy is for People Campaign
tour of New York State made a stop in Buffalo last week.
Local leaders such as county legislator Betty Jean Grant, Ellen Kennedy from Citizen Action and Sheldon
Anderson of Buffalo State Democracy Matters joined Jonah Minkoff-Zern and Ashley Somers, organizers
of the Public Citizen campaign.
About 20 people attended the meeting held at Burning Books, 420 Connecticut St., last Wednesday at 7
p.m.
The first speaker, Grant, talked about her recent political race against Tim Kennedy for the office of
New York State Senator of District 58. She said that had corporations and their big-dollar endorsements
stayed out of the race she would have won.
Grant said that three major things that America needs to focus on for future elections are "better
trained voting inspectors, the need for voter education and empowerment and campaign finance
reform."
A power point presentation given by Minkoff-Zern and Somers addressed the issue of influenced
elections by corporations and the vast amounts of campaign money donated by them.
Minkoff-Zern said that the presentation and the entire campaign focuses on is that "for-profit
corporations don't have the same constitutional rights as individuals."
Hosting meetings, keeping media involved and pressuring congress are things individual citizens can do
to contribute to the growth of the movement, Minkoff-Zern said.
As stated in a press release, the campaign is hoped to "build momentum for the fair elections act and a
constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United."
Anderson said he hopes to bring some of that momentum to Buffalo State by holding general meetings,
rallies in the quad and educating students on important issues.
"With Buffalo State, there are a lot of people from New York City," he said. "People need to get more
involved with regards to what district they're in, who's running and what are the issues."
Another way he hopes to get students more involved is through professors giving out extra credit.
"If your professor would be willing to give you extra credit to attend a meeting for Citizen Action or just
getting petitions for a particular issue, something that simple is one way to be more involved," Anderson
said.
Most students, Anderson said, don't participate as much in local elections because many students live
away from home while in school. He said that even small donations and petitions can help students
participate and have a political voice.
"A lot of the time college students are not as tapped into local news as they are national," he said. "But
if you break it down and explain to them that, on a local level, they can make an impact."
Minkoff-Zern said that Public Citizen is also trying to get students more involved by having a new
student organizing guide as well as working with student groups and organizations.
"We think the first step is passing the student council resolutions calling for a constitutional
amendment," he said. "For this movement to be successful, students are going to need to play a major
role."
Katie Anderson can be reached by email at anderson.record@live.com.
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