Elena Blogs for a Change

If you’ve spent time reading this blog, you know that I’m interested in voting rights. California recently passed a measure allowing 17-year-olds to vote in primary elections provided they turn 18 before the general electio n. This is only the latest in a series of legislative initiatives to encourage more young people to vote. To learn more about these and other efforts, I reached out to attorney and activist Laura Brill. Aside from clerking for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and leading a successful career in law, Laur a Brill is the founder of The Civics Center, an organization seeking to improve civic engagement among youth. Below is my interview with her. (If you want to see my previous posts on voting rights, you can read my essay here and my interview with expert John Bonifaz here .) What sparked your interest in improving youth voter engagement?  In early 2017, I learned that California allows young people to preregister to vote when they are 16.  I w

Whe n Moesha Kibibi was a young teen growing up in the slums in Kenya, she was kicked out of her Muslim household because her family frowned upon her passion for dance. At first, she lived on the streets and sold groundnuts to support herself. Over time, Kibibi was able to rent a small, 10-by-10 room where she took in and provided shelter to other young girls living on the street.  Life in the Kenyan Majengo slums was anything but easy for the young women sharing Kibibi’s tiny room. They had to overcome the challenges of poverty, sexual violence, and, in some cases, single parenthood as teens. But Kibibi continued to dance, and it was dance that eventually provided an avenue for a better life.  As she won dance competitions and rose to fame as a member of one of Kenya’s most popular dance troupes, FBI , she continued to mentor and help other young girls. “I bought them food, clothes, and sanitary towels and even tried contributing to their rent with the little money I ha