In late 2008, over 70 Lawrencians, convened by Lawrence CommunityWorks, came together for set of remarkable conversations that began with a reflection on the “new politics” represented by the 2008 presidential campaign. The conversation moved to the question of how we can bring some of that spirit and momentum to what will be a VERY important election year for Lawrence.  These conversations culminated in a powerful and resonant message, that in Lawrence, in the year 2009 we all want to work for:

“A New Community, based on a New Politics, with a New Commitment.”

What is the “New Politics” that people talked about? It’s a politics without negativity, personal attacks and divisions — but one that is committed to including everyone, getting good information into the hands of all Lawrencians, making sure everyone who can vote does vote, having positive and respectful discourse around ideas and keeping our leaders focused on a positive vision for the future of our great city and its people. This “New Politics” is best summed up by these 3 action words:

“Respect. Empower. Include.”

Today, Yes We Will (YWW) is a non-partisan open forum for all who live and work in Lawrence and who support and are willing to promote a New Politics in Lawrence based on these 3 words. The primary sponsor of Yes We Will is Lawrence CommunityWorks, a non-profit community based network of Lawrence residents.

YWW is working to ensure that the 2009 Election Season in Lawrence is the best, most inclusive process ever. YWW focuses on 4 areas that we want to have an impact on the quality of the political process.

• Good Talk – That the candidates, their campaigns, residents, media, will promote positive and respectful discourse on the issues and on the quality of leadership needed in public office
• Stop the Gossip – That candidates and their campaigns will stay focused on the important issues that impact the future of our city rather than on the past, personalities and gossip.
• Information Rich – All residents have what they need to make positive and informed decisions about the candidates and the issues so that everyone can make their best decision at the voting booth
• Everyone Votes – That the political process is open and accessible to everyone, and all those who can vote, will vote on Election Day (how do we get all voters registered and to the polls on Election Day?)

Anyone who lives or works in Lawrence can be a member. Membership is free and just requires a pledge to lend your voice to the movement. Candidates for public office and those that work for them or who have official roles in campaigns can sign on as supporters of the movement, but cannot be members. This is so YWW can maintain its non-partisanship and not be perceived as supporting one candidate over another.

No, you just can’t be a candidate, receive a paycheck from one, or hold a formal, legal position in the campaign (i.e. treasurer, finance chair, campaign chair etc.). In fact it is fully understood that all members of YWW have made or will make personal preferences for candidates and on local issues. After all, that is what YWW is encouraging all residents of Lawrence to do. What binds us together when we are doing YWW work, is the commitment to a better, more respectful and accessible process, so that we all feel good about supporting the leaders that we need here in Lawrence.

YWW is an effort to bring out the very best in ourselves, our leaders and our community when it comes to our political process, and to hold ourselves accountable to each other and an idea. So part of being a member of YWW is ‘signing on ‘to the idea the binds us together…The Pledge is…

“I support a political process in Lawrence that Respects, Empowers and Includes all of our residents. I will work to promote respectful dialogue, to stayed focus on issues not on gossip, to stay informed and make informed decisions on candidates and issues, to ask questions and have my voice heard, and to vote on election day and get my family, friends and neighbors to vote too!”

Yes, this is a partnership between resident/voters, the candidates and the media to have a civil and productive political process, so YWW asks them to sign pledges as well. The Candidates Pledge and the Media Pledge are available on our website, along with a list of candidates and media outlets that have joined the movement as partners.

It’s simple, just sign a YWW pledge to agree to support and work for better, more respectful politics in Lawrence, and agree to provide contact information so that we can keep you informed. There are plenty of opportunities to volunteer your time.

No, not if you don’t want to or if you don’t have the time. A lot of YWW members do volunteer on one of the action teams or in events, but that is a choice.  At a minimum, YWW members sign a pledge and put a sign in there window or on their car – someplace visible, so that candidates can see how many people in Lawrence favor New Politics. Members get periodic up-dates by email or by phone about what is going on, and have access to the YWW website for up-to-date information on the election season in 2009.

YWW members do lots of things such as:

• Host or Facilitate a House Meeting in your neighborhood. Invite neighbors and friends over for dinner to have conversation about “the New Politics of Respect, Empower, and Include
• Join one of the field teams to go door to door or to the supermarket to recruit new YWW members, get the YWW message out and sign up new voters
• Join the one of the New Media Teams to get the message out on the radio, billboard, newspapers or help make a video
• Join one of the information teams that do research on the issues, interviews candidates or organizes candidate meetings and forums so that we can get good information to voters
• Sign up for one of the “Rock the Vote” teams who will be working around primary and final Election Day to make sure that everyone who can vote, does vote