HEARING NEW VOICES ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Students immerse themselves in politics at 3-day convention

Manchester - In all his days spent meeting and greeting his way
through New Hampshire convenience stores and living rooms, Sen. Joe
Lieberman had never been asked that question. So, when a member of
Students for Sensible Drug Policy wondered whether, as president,
Lieberman would repeal the portion of the Higher Education Act that
prevented students with prior drug convictions from receiving federal
loans and grants, Lieberman just didn't know. He'd have to do a little
more research, but his preliminary answer was yes.

At that response, the Center of New Hampshire Holiday Inn's Armory
conference room burst into a moment of cheering. Lieberman, who until
then had spoken about taxes, jobs and the strength of the middle
class, seemed to have wandered into some common territory.

The young men and women at College Convention 2004 - some wearing
suits and ties, others in hooded sweatshirts and mussed hair - approved.

The convention, a 31/2-day conference that drew about 1,000 high
school and college students from all over the country to Manchester,
was truly an opportunity for political immersion. By yesterday
afternoon, the students had already heard from presidential
candidates, including Lieberman, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Sen. John
Kerry, former senator Carol Moseley Braun and libertarian Gary Nolan.
They had received tips on activism and campus organizing from former
National Organization for Women president Patricia Ireland and had
weighed in on subjects like bio-terrorism, campaign financing and
intellectual property laws.

Today and tomorrow, the students will meet Sen. John Edwards, retired
general Wesley Clark and Howard Dean and explore issues of human
rights, social security, election reform and women in politics.

Professors and students from New England College spent all year
organizing the convention, timed to take place just weeks before the
New Hampshire primary. All the Democratic candidates except Rep. Dick
Gephardt and the Rev. Al Sharpton agreed to make appearances, and the
college managed to book a few other big name guests, including
Ireland, CNN founder Ted Turner and former Secretary of Education
William Bennett.

Matching these powerful men and women against hundreds of outspoken
and attentive students produced a "tremendous amount of energy," said
New England College professor Jim Walsh, who helped direct the event.

"We're encouraging them to become engaged citizens, to do more than
vote, to join organizations and start organizations," said Walsh.
"Getting involved is what this is all about."

Most of the attendees didn't need convincing. They already volunteered
with their campus political groups or spent time lobbying for better
drug laws, fair trade and women's rights. The convention was a chance
to learn more, spread their own messages and schmooze with other
idealists and social critics.

A group of students from the Derryfield School, a private middle and
high school in Manchester, came to the convention to prepare for a
mock debate the students will hold later this month. The students
hoped to research the candidates they would portray in the debate, but
they also felt drawn to the atmosphere of discussion and
problem-solving.

"We're trying to end the stereotype that all young people are
politically apathetic," said senior Maura Spiegelman.

Other students expressed similar sentiments.

"College students are real people," said Beth Bevis, a student from
St. Olaf College in Minnesota. "It's important to remember we're
considering the same issues, but you might have to address them in a
different way."

But many students felt their classmates back on campus lived in a
different world, immune to the realities of economics, foreign
relations or civil liberties.

Niobli Armah, the freshman class president at Southern University A &
M in Louisiana, wore a crisp dark suit to the convention. His goal was
to bring the excitement he found in Manchester back home to his
freshman classmates, most of whom weren't yet involved in trying to
change the world.

"Politics is the most direct avenue for social change . . . but it's
not really brought to young people," said Armah.

Outside the conference rooms, Cory Taliaferro handed out pamphlets at
a booth for the New Hampshire Young Democrats, an organization that
seeks to register new voters, elect more young representatives and
encourage local activism. During his work with the organization,
Taliaferro witnessed an indifference often caused by a lack of
knowledge. Young people weren't a part of the political process
because most of them hadn't been invited to participate, he said.
Though the war in Iraq "woke up some younger folks," many students
still didn't know enough about American politics to care.

"Our issues are being ignored, and that's turned off a lot of folks,"
said Taliaferro.

Patricia Ireland's speech offered some perspective on the way politics
has closed its doors to groups of people throughout history. She spoke
about women's involvement in government, from the suffragists'
struggles to the first women candidates, activists and senators. Janet
Reno, Geraldine Ferraro and Moseley Braun have already risen through
acres of white men. Ireland encouraged her audience to follow these
leaders.

"You all have your voices, you all have your votes. I want more of you
to think about running for office. Run for dog-catcher or mosquito
control board. Run early and often," said Ireland. "Your life will
have meaning and purpose. Raising hell is fun."

Between speeches, it was causes, not candidates, that captured
attention. Students took the "World's Smallest Political Quiz" at a
booth run by the Libertarian party. They looked through piles of
buttons and bumper stickers, picked up leaflets about social security
reform and terrorist threats and chatted with supporters of repeat
presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche.

Scott Williams, 20, a political science major at New England College,
wore a pin with a barely hidden insult to the president. He says he is
a born politician, a loyal Democrat since age 12. On Wednesday
afternoon, he heard Kucinich, his political idol, speak for more than
an hour. Kucinich's wisdom and honesty were inspiring, and so were the
words of an earlier mentor, Williams said.

"In preschool, my teacher said I'd be the next president," said
Williams.

Kunst, a Miami Beach activist trying to entice voters to write in Sen.
Hillary Rodham Clinton's name on their primary ballots, said he was
surprised by the range of candidates the students at the convention
supported.

"I thought there would be overwhelming support for Dean," he said.
"But Dean hasn't captured everyone. The youth community is very open."

At about noon, as hundreds of students waited for Kerry to appear at
the hotel, the senator's young supporters lined the entrance to the
Armory conference room, shouting "Go, Kerry, Go!"

At a table near the front of the room, a group of students from Brown
University in Rhode Island talked about their involvement with
Students for Sensible Drug Policy, a national organization that
focuses on trying to reform the laws that decide punishments for drug
users. In particular, the group criticizes the number of young people
put in jail for drug offenses, the incomplete drug education in high
schools and the law that forbids convicted felons to vote, even after
being released from prison.

"It's really a racist and classist issue," said Brown student Diana
Tamir. "The more I heard about the war on drugs, the more I realized
it was a dismal failure."

When Kerry entered the room, Tamir and her friends were ready. They
listened to him talk about his student loan pay-down plan, his $4,000
college tuition tax credit and his hopes for their generation.

"We need now, more than ever, to get your energy back," Kerry said.
"Stand up and get involved and show the courage I know you have."

As soon as Kerry paused, a few dozen students held their hands up. One
asked him the question about the Higher Education Act drug provision,
the same question someone would pose to Lieberman later that day. The
crowd loved Kerry's answer: Former convicted drug users who had served
their sentences would be eligible for student loans during his presidency.

Kerry also told the audience he would not appoint any Supreme Court
Justices who would endanger Roe v. Wade, nor would he favor
prosecuting people who used marijuana for medical reasons. He wanted
to expand the Peace Corps and make the war on terrorism more than just
a "war of ideas."

When asked how he would persuade college students to become more
active in their own government, Kerry's answer was automatic.

"I want you to feel the power that you really have. It was college
kids who got on buses and went to break the back of segregation in
America," he said. "My campaign is fueled by young people."