IGNITE's Blog

Erika Alvarez is a second-year Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Houston Fellow.

Milad Abdulla is the Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Denver Fellow.

Ryane Jones is the Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE D.C/Maryland/Virginia (DMV) Fellow.

Je’Mia Irving is the Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Chicago Fellow.

Greta Magendantz is the Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Boston Fellow.

Kyla Menconi is the Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Bay Area Fellow.

Madysen Forney is a second-year Dr. Anne Moses IGNITE Atlanta Fellow.

Recent efforts in North Carolina to restrict youth voting will come back to bite. I'm certain of it because as a student, I've helped countless student peers navigate the complex process to vote. I know how explicit efforts to restrict youth voting are firing up my compatriots. Young people are told we have low participation in politics, and that we should participate more. But then, politicians try to pass voter restriction laws which make it harder to participate. Still, like it or not, youth voters are becoming more of a force in North Carolina. 

“Who said she could run? She said she could run.” - Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi

All of my grandmother’s children are bankers. That, at least, is what she tells the other ladies at church. And while her not-so-humble brag isn’t entirely accurate, it isn’t exactly a lie either. All four of her children, from the oldest, my uncle Ted the bank executive, to the youngest, my mother Patrice the accountant, spent years studying finance, management, business, economics, and accounting in order to achieve the lifestyles they lead now. It’s abundantly clear to anyone paying attention that their hard work directly led to their present success. And they did it on their own. No acres. No mules. Just Black Americans proving that they don’t need help to be excellent in their respective fields.