Photo: Troy Blackwell
NEW YORK — Troy Blackwell, an Afro-Latino voting rights activist and former New York City Council candidate, has founded ‘Ready for Change’, a political action committee dedicated to promoting youth voter education and supporting forward-thinking democrats at the local and state level.
Ready for Change aims to make democracy more representative by increasing voter participation among youth, especially youth of color.
Blackwell will lead the PAC and oversee potential partnerships. Educational resources will be provided in English, Spanish, Arabic, and French to reach diverse voters. Key issues the PAC will focus on include climate change, mental health, criminal justice reform, youth employment and the housing crisis. Gen-Z and Millennials combined makeup 37% of eligible voters nationally. In early 2020, New York State expanded voter pre-registration to 16-year-olds and 59.3% of eligible voters 18-29 in New York City turned out to vote in the 2020 Presidential election. An estimated 82,000+ 18-year-olds will now be able to vote in the 2021 general election for New York City Mayor and City Council who were too young to vote in November 2020.
“At a time when voting rights are under attack, there is simply too much at stake to sit on the sidelines,” said Troy Blackwell. “Voter education is one of the passports out of poverty. Young people are on the frontlines everyday as agents of change and are the leaders of tomorrow. It is imperative to engage and empower young people in the political process.”
Troy Blackwell is a former New York City Council Candidate and alum of the Biden-Harris campaign and Obama White House The PAC will engage with young voters ahead of elections in 2022 In early 2020, New York State expanded voter pre-registration to 16-year-olds 59.3% of eligible voters 18-29 in NYC turned out to vote in the 2020 Presidential election
Ready for Change is a political action committee dedicated to promoting youth voter education and supporting forward-thinking democrats at the local and state level. Visit www.readyforchange.nyc for more information.
Follow Troy Blackwell on Instagram and Twitter @TroyBlackwelljr.
