Remember your first time?

By Cooper

"I don't want to seem too political," a young, single woman said the other day when asked why she didn't vote.

That's not a punch line; In the last presidential election the largest bloc of non-voters was unmarried women -- over 20 million of them. 

Imagine what could happen if those 20 million people make their votes count, and their voices heard, on November 7.

Women's Voices, Women's Vote, along with filmmaker Julie Bergman, did more than imagine.

As part of their campaign to find a solution to this critical issue, they have made one of the most effective public service announcements to "get out the vote" I have ever seen. The campaign is called "Remember Your First Time," and it features the amazing and talented actresses, Tyne Daly, Rosario Dawson, Lauren Graham, Angie Harmon, Marg Helgenberger, Felicity Huffman and Regina King talking about, well, their "first time." Voting, that is.

These beautiful, smart actresses deliver lines like this one, perfectly put by Felicity Huffman: "I like to do it in the morning when I'm fresh."

Or Angie Harmon saying, "I did a lot of research on positions I like."

And Regina King admitting, "I was the last one of all my friends to do it."

These PSAs are so inspiring, and one line in particular really got me: "We don't have to dream about the future. We can wake up and vote for it."

Yeah, baby.

Click here to view the Public Service Announcements. You can put these PSAs on your blog, send them to your friends, call your local TV stations and request they air them. Visit www.wvwv.org for blog buttons and banners, links for state-by-state voter registration and other cool functionality, like a "tell a friend to vote" tool. Whatever else you do, remember: Vote on November 7.

Related resources:

Women Matter: Why I Vote

Polling Place Photo Project

Cooper is the parent of two girls and two boys, ages eight to one. She lives in Pittsburgh, Pa., with her husband and children.

Comments

[amy h.]

Cooper - thanks for this post - I loved watching the ads and have added the link to my myspace page. I am such a huge supporter of the voting process. While I think that much still needs to be done to make sure that our votes are counted (!) I feel proud whenever I get a chance to show my children how to make their voices heard when they get their moment in the voting booth!