A new ScoopDaily/Zogby poll shows that young people, who have been overwhelmingly identifying as progressive, are starting to say that it's President Barack Obama that's abandoning the progressive cause, not them. The poll finds that about 30 percent of young people believe, "abandoning many of the progressive causes he championed during his campaign." About 44 percent believe Obama is still working "as hard as he can" to fulfill his promises.
The refrain of how young people are selfish and have a short attention span is almost becoming cliché at this point. When 10 percent or less of young people showed up at the polls in New Jersey and Virginia, E.J. Dionne in the Washington Postnoted, "the Obama change-agents, particularly the young, were notably absent from the voting booths this week."
The expectation among progressives and campaigns is that Obama activated young people and drove them to the polls. Now, the attitude seems to be, campaigns seem to think that the money, effort, and organizing that went into the 2008 election should glide young people into engagement for years to come. While the potential for young people to stay engaged in progressive politics is strong, the organizing needs to be a two-way street. Progressive young people are a base like any other group of people, and when they become frustrated with the direction policies are going in, it's no wonder they become frustrated.
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