Kucinich support rolls into town
PORTSMOUTH - One week ago, 15 young California voters piled into a brightly colored bus and began their journey across the country to spread the word - and song - about the power of voting and the campaign of Dennis Kucinich.
On Wednesday, the bus pulled into Portsmouth and parked along Daniel Street outside the Kucinich office.
"We’re a moving fusion of art and politics, and an example of sustainability," said 23-year-old Jenny Wilkie about the group and the bio-diesel bus it’s traveling in.
Wilkie, a resident of Santa Cruz Calif., and the group’s press coordinator, said her crew consists of activists and artists who are hoping to show young people across the country that every vote counts.
"The people in our generation can make a difference," Wilkie said.
The monthlong trip is sponsored by the Democratic Project, a youth-founded effort to unite artists and political progressives behind a candidate that represents their values.
In this case, the group is showing its strong and loyal support for Kucinich.
"He’s the only candidate who is really interested in the future," said 22-year-old Cheziani Casan, a freelance writer. "I had been registered with the Green Party, but Dennis hits on all the big issues, mostly peace, but is given a national platform because he’s a Democrat."
On Wednesday, the group met with the candidate and relaxed before heading to Dartmouth College today.All those from the bus said their signs, songs and support have received a warm welcome in Iowa, Ohio and Massachusetts. They said they were expecting the same here in New Hampshire for the next week and a half.
The group will continue to tour the state, spreading its message until the primary.
The smiles were wide on the travelers faces, but six days on a bus without showers with people you just met?
Sky King, a 19-year-old spoken-word poet and hip-hop lyricist, said the trip was more positive than one might imagine.
"It’s been a unified experience. We’re working together to get here safely and raise morale through even the worst weather we drove through," King said.
Casan said the group wasn’t too worried about the most recent polls showing Kucinich near the bottom in the New Hampshire voters’ lineup.
"I don’t feel that’s totally accurate," she said. "If we can turn out the youth vote, we could create a surprise."
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