Knocking on doors and inspiring the next generation
By Ellen Fischer
“When we vote, we win.” Those words still ring in my ears almost three weeks after my first rally in Phoenix during my AFT get-out-the-vote deployment.
Back home in Alaska, I’ve volunteered for countless Saturday labor walks; but going to Phoenix less than a month before Election Day 2024 to be part of the AFT’s GOTV effort is an experience I will never forget.
When I arrived in Phoenix, I had no idea how many amazing experiences awaited me over the next 12 days. As I told my brothers and sisters in the Alaska Public Employees Association at our Biennial Caucus this year, “As AFT members, we have friends and family everywhere we go.”
And as I knocked on doors and attended rallies, I realized why this experience mattered so much to me.
During the 2020 election, my then 5-year-old granddaughter, Ella, told me she was looking for the book I gave her about the last woman president. When I explained that we hadn’t yet had a woman president, she looked sad and confused. She then said, maybe it was the book I gave her about the last woman vice-president. When I told her there had never been a woman vice-president, she responded, “That’s crazy!”
Together, we found the book, Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls Are Born to Lead, and Ella was very excited and relieved to see Kamala Harris become the first woman vice president.
I am usually nervous about door-knocking, but this time, it was easy.
Fast forward to 2024, and now 9-year-old Ella is, as she herself puts it, “such a fan of Kamala.” So, when the opportunity to volunteer for a GOTV deployment in a swing state came up, I was excited.
I am usually nervous about door-knocking, but this time, it was easy. I didn’t feel anxious about understanding the details of the issues. The choice is so clear: preserving democracy; ensuring our daughters and granddaughters have the same rights we had; and that all people are treated fairly, equally and with respect.
Ella has reminded me more than once that the president and vice president must be kind; that is what this election has become about for me and why the choice is so clear: Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.
I recommend a GOTV deployment opportunity to everyone. I am so grateful to my new AFT friends for the fun times we had, the interesting stories we shared, and the kind people who opened their doors to us and offered us their heartfelt thoughts — and water. I am especially grateful to the rally warriors who stood for hours in the heat to hear messages of hope and kindness.
Ellen Fischer is a member of the Retired Public Employees of Alaska/APEA/AFT and a member of the AFT Retirees program and policy council.
