Hillary for Pennsylvania York Office Opening
Emma Riley, York Organizer:
I’m from Lexington, Massachusetts, a small suburb right outside of Boston, where the first battle of the Revolutionary War took place.
I had the opportunity to grow up in that town and go to a fantastic public school, Lexington High School, the number one high school in the state. My parents both worked two different jobs so we could pay the mortgage. My brother and I were able to get an education and have the opportunity to go out and better the lives of ourselves, our families and community.
I remember the day I graduated from Lexington High School, around four years ago. After I walked across the stage and received my diploma, I went back and I hugged my parents.
I said, “Thank you so much for not only working five days a week, but for also working nights and weekends. Thank you so much for going the extra mile, so I have the opportunity to go to college, to get experience, and to get an education on how to publicly serve others.”
I graduated three months and a couple of days ago from a university in North Carolina. I had the opportunity to study political science, and from this point forward I’m going to be serving my community in the best way possible. I’m fighting alongside Democrats that have our best interests at heart, that are working to fix our economy so that it’s not only working for those at the top, but working for all of us in between.
Salome Garcia Johnson, Delegate
I’m a regional director for the Black Caucus of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, I’m also a State Committee Member, on the Executive Board of the Latino Caucus, and I’m the Political Action chair for the NAACP in York. I consider myself a black woman of Hispanic ethnicity. I support Hillary Clinton because I believe in her, and I trust her, and I believe she is the most qualified candidate in my lifetime.
I started in politics when I was about six years old. My father used to have my mother dress us up in cute little dresses and we’d go canvassing with him. He’d stand my sister and I in front of the door so he never got a door slammed in his face! I did my first phone bank at age 13. So, I’ve been doing it a long time, because I’m 69 years old now.
I do voter registration, and I knock doors — I love canvassing, because I think when you knock on someone’s door it’s a real opportunity to change a mind, to persuade someone, or to get someone engaged. I feel that especially younger people aren’t as engaged as they should be and I’d like to see more engagement. If I go out canvassing and I knock on 50 doors and I get one person, I’m excited. Because I’ve changed a mind, I’ve made a difference, and that’s very important to me. I believe that there’s nothing more important than getting out the vote, especially in this election.
When my siblings and I were younger, part of our birthday gift when we turned voting age was my father driving us to the Board of Elections to register to vote. So it’s always been with me, because we were raised with the idea that it was our responsibility. We were not raised to believe it was a privilege, but that it was our responsibility. We were told, “Voting is your Constitutional right, it is your responsibility to exercise it.” And that’s what I did with my daughter, and what she did with hers.
Darlene Smith, Volunteer and Supporter
Darlene L. Smith is an life-long Democrat and feminist in York.
“I’m a retired teacher, so I’m lifelong member of Pennsylvania State Education Association, and I’m on the board of PSEA Retirees. Many unions, including PSEA, are supporting Hillary too.”
Darlene creates homemade buttons to show her support for Hillary.
Deborah Yonick, Supporter
Before President Obama ran, I was non-political. I was a registered Republican because my parents were, and I just wasn’t really interested in politics. I really wasn’t following politics to the extent that I actually should have been, and I actually wish that at that age I was doing it. I became interested because of President Obama. I became involved with the York County Federation of Democratic Women, and I just believe the Democratic Party represents all my life philosophies. Now, I’m totally a true-blue Democrat.
In 2008, with Obama, I felt that it was his time.. And really I think it’s Hillary’s time now.
I wasn’t a hardcore Republican — I just wasn’t tapped in. Until I realized what all their policies were about — I said, “Hey, this does not represent me whatsoever.”
It was listening to Obama and listening to Hillary speak that first time around that really inspired me to know — this is my party, these are my policies and beliefs, and I need to support this.
I’m totally pro-LGBT rights, pro-marriage equality. I’m very pro-choice, I support Planned Parenthood — that is extremely important to me. I am very much into sensible gun laws. None of which the Republicans represent at all. I am very much into education and better funding for education, better pay for our teachers. And I’ve also come to know — because I always ask Republicans, “why are you a Republican?”
They tell me they’re fiscally responsible — and that cracks me up because, I feel like a lot the states right now where there are Republican governors or Republican-run assemblies — they’re hurting the worst. So, the myth about Republicans being fiscally responsible — is just a myth. It is not that. I feel that a lot of the policies socially — and fiscally — Democrats have done a better job for our economy. So I realized, I need to support this group.
Roderick Artis, Supporter
When I was in college, and working, I’d think sometimes, “How are we surviving on what we’re being paid?”
You can’t even support yourself on $7.45 an hour. How many years have gone by and people are still being paid that low minimum wage? It is a starvation wage, you know, it’s terrible, and I think we do need to kind of come into the future because those wages, they’re way behind. I really like the fact that Hillary is pushing for the minimum wage to go up. She’s looking out for other people.
Another thing is, too, for my mom, I told her, you know, and she’s a Hillary supporter, she didn’t vote during the primary, but I said, “you’ve gotta go out with me in November because at the end of the day, you know, this is your chance to be able to say you voted and hopefully, God willing, you helped elect a woman President of the United States in your lifetime.” That’s the biggest thing that I really want her to be able to say that she did in her lifetime, was being able to, you know, elect a woman as president.
