The LA Times reports:

“Penn, 31, campaigned for Barack Obama last year. Word is the Indian American actor was a big hit on college campuses. Now Penn will become associate director in the White House Office of Public Liaison, an envoy to the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, to Hollywood and to young people.”

Personally, I think this is pretty cool - especially since Kal Penn just seems like a guy I could sit down and chill with. Kind of like our president, too. (I’ll just ignore the slight sense of awkwardness and irony with the fact Obama has stonewalled the extremely popular issue around the legalization of marijuana while Kumar goes to the White House.)

The sea of humanity stretched before me and behind me was spectacular. Inspiring. Unbelievable. Despite the hours of waiting in below freezing temperatures, waking up before dawn, walking miles to score a spot where all the action was but a speck on the horizon, I feel like I was part of something greater than myself. I was part of history. The moment will live on forever in my memory. I feel lucky, proud and amazed that I can say “I was there”. It was so worth the time, money and energy to get there. Elizabeth Alexander’s Inaugural Poem, “Praise Song for the Day”, captures the essence of this movement so well. It’s what really brought me to tears on that incredible day. I am certainly feeling the promise and potential of today’s sharp sparkle and winter air. Read the poem now, if you didn’t catch it on Tuesday. Yes we did.

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Last night was quite possibly the most beautiful, joyous night of my life. I am in love with my country. I cried tears of joy, danced through the streets of Oakland and screamed till I got hoarse. I saw the polls come in at Oakland for Obama/Hip Hop for Obama’s block party at Everett & Jones in Jack London Square. It was wonderful to be in an environment with mostly Black folks, as although this is a victory for all of us, it is especially so for African Americans. The tears flowed freely throughout the room, the dancing raucous, the overflowing joy uncontainable.

Election Night Obamania Block Party in Jack London Square, Oakland [Make sure to click "Play" button on this YouTube video]

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It’s been an interesting week here in Florida, I’ve been here since last Sunday canvassing away. My roommate Jennifer arrived on Tuesday night, so it’s been nice to have a team since she arrived. I’ve met some great folks here like Arvind (below), who I got to talk to at the Boca Obama HQ today, so yah, I’m not the only Asian American volunteer in these parts! Arvind lives in the Boca Raton area, and has been volunteering on and off for about a month. Arvind told me “Obama is the right person for job, has sound judgment and he will change  perceptions around the world that whatever you want to be, you can be…especially for poorest people. Plus, Obama will improve the image of the US around the world…Although with India, it won’t make much of a difference in our diplomatic relations due to the Pakistan issues, diplomacy could still improve with an Obama administration…I think Florida will go blue unless there is corruption again…” Arvind’s sentiments closely mirror what I’ve heard from a lot of folks here, of all ages, races and backgrounds….

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October 24, 2008

Dear Friends,

Thank you for the opportunity to share a few thoughts with you as we near the night of Diwali. In the coming days, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and their friends of all faiths will gather across America and around the world to celebrate the Festival of Lights. Much has happened in the world since the last Diwali, and this is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the year past and rededicate ourselves to spreading peace and tolerance in the coming year.

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There are already cases of voter fraud and voter suppression from coast-to-coast, voters beware, this seems to be the Republican’s last ditch strategy! The Obama campaign has set up a massive legal response team to handle theses situations…So, before you go to vote make sure you have the nearest, or several Obama Campaign Offices phone number(s). Also, it would be wise to know your voter rights before you head to the polls (thanks to People for the American Way for their great resources).

If you experience difficulty voting or voter fraud, DO NOT LEAVE THE SITE! Call your closest Obama Office and let them know what is going on and wait for their team to arrive. They will send lawyers to address the issue.

There are seven (7) ways the Republicans will attempt to suppress your vote, listed below.

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Jeff Chang’s brilliance shines once again in November’s VIBE magazine cover story. He points out that “the politics of the last 40 years are over. Barack Obama’s phenomenal rise signals a country on the verge of a new majority”. Jeff also asserts “young people, urbanites, progressives, and people of color have been the driving force behind Obama’s presidential run. “Barack Obama owes his nomination, in large part, to the strength of those voters,” says BET News analyst Keli Goff, author of Party Crashing: How The Hip-Hop Generation Declared Political Independence (Basic, 2008), “and the strength of people underestimating those voters.”

I, for one, can’t wait for the issue to hit the stands and read the entire article. Jeff is certainly one of the most fabulous Asian American thinkers of the Hip-Hop generation in my book (he defined the term after all)… and I’m so happy he’s written this article about the Hip-Hop generation making a critical difference in this year’s campaign.

Let’s see how this McCain alert system fares in these last three weeks of campaign hijinks.

With Obama’s impressive lead in every single poll out there, I suspect we’ll be looking at a lot of panicked and alarmed reactions by the McCain/Palin machine. Though, it would be smartest if they do what Kristol advises: fire the campaign.
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After my last post on the wave of overseas organizing for Obama, I did a bit of sleuthing about absentee voting and was dismayed to find out that only 5.5% of eligible absentee voters actually submit a ballot (through an article in the South Korean OhmyNews, no less). And worse, due some bizarre and idiosyncratic rules in some places (they vary from state to state), many times those that are submitted don’t even get counted.

I thought I’d help y’all out and identify some ways that folks can go about voting absentee, put together a little resource list for all of you out there who want to vote but for whatever reason can’t make it to the voting booth on November 4th. Also, please send these resources to anyone you know who lives abroad, or may not want to actually mark their calendar and go to their local polling place.

Deadlines are approaching and it seem like some may have already past at the 45 day-before-the-election mark. But there is definitely still time to register to vote absentee in most states. For example, in my state (California) you need to register absentee by October 28th. Let’s show ‘em that we can break all the rules in this election and bring home slew of absentee ballots demanding change!

So, there are no excuses to not vote, ok? Here you go, you’re welcome….

“Long Distance Voter is the internet’s most comprehensive resource for absentee voters. Our voter guides have everything you need to register to vote and get your absentee ballots. We make voting by mail easy! If you get stuck at any point, just contact us and we’ll personally guide you through the process.” says Debra Cleaver, from Long Distance Voter. [aka http://www.longdistancevoter.org]

Democrats Abroad is the official Democratic Party organization for the millions of Americans living outside the United States. We work to advance the principles of our Party by spreading the Democratic message to Americans abroad and encouraging them to vote for Democratic candidates back home. [aka http://www.votefromabroad.org]

Federal Voting Assistance Program is a website I don’t recommend, but since it’s the official Federal site here you go. [aka http://www.fvap.gov]

Wow, there is a ton of organizing and effort going on to register US voters abroad. It’s pretty incredible to see our fellow  Obama supporters, who also happen to be expats, feel the call to action like the rest of us! In fact, there is speculation that the expatriate vote coulde be the X-factor in this year’s election. It’s pretty well known the rest of the world is praying for Obama to win, as evidenced by a BBC poll indicating 4:1 favor of Obama in all 22 countries they surveyed. You can even see what people from other parts of the world have to tell us on LinkTV.

Organizers are making samosas to fundraise in Bangalore, dreaming about Obama-fueled November ululations in Hong Kong, rallying Filipino veterans to support Barack, gathering folks for watch parties in Bangkok (see the articles posted below) and posting campaign blogs in Iran.

Maybe because they are living overseas and see the deterioration of our country’s image first hand, it’s even more crucial for these organizers and community workers to have Barack win November 4th.

Please do your part-if you happen to know any US citizens living outside the country, please send them here to register and vote absentee! Also, if you don’t know about Avaaz, you should.

Check out these supporter views from the Obama expat organizing community in Asia:

Indians Savor Samosas and U.S. Election from New America Media, by Sandip Roy, Posted: Sep 22, 2008

Ululations for Obama across the globe from Asia Times, by Kent Ewing, Posted: Sep 23, 2008

Obama Victory good for RP, say Democrats from Manila Times, by Katrina Guevarra, Posted: Sep 09, 2008

Awakening the Overseas Electorate from Bangkok Post, by Erica Fry, Posted: August 31, 2008

Iranians 4 Obama