Amy Goodman, co-founder and host of Democracy Now!, titled her November 5th truthdig.com column: "Organizer in Chief" (great article BTW). In describing how Obama earned his victory she says:
Perhaps the job that qualified him most for the presidency was not senator or lawyer, but the one most vilified by his opponents: community organizer, on the South Side of Chicago. As Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin mocked: “This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn’t just need an organizer.”
But perhaps that’s just what it needs. Obama achieved his decisive electoral victory through mass community organizing, on the ground and online, and an unheard-of amount of money. It was an indisputably historic victory: the first African-American elected to the highest office in the United States. Yet community organizing is inherently at crosscurrents with the massive infusion of campaign cash, despite the number of small donations that the Obama campaign received.
She then discusses the influence of corporate donors:
There are two key camps that feel invested in the Obama presidency: the millions who each gave a little, and the few who gave millions. The big-money interests have means to gain access. They know how to get meetings in the White House, and they know what lobbyists to hire. But the millions who donated, who volunteered, who were inspired to vote for the first time actually have more power, when organized.
Whether you agree or disagree with the likelihood of corporate influence on the administration of President-Elect Obama (whose chief of staff will be Rahm Emanuel, not exactly the most anti-lobbyist or most averse to corporate interests), we can all agree that the organization we all participated in that has culminated in this victory must go on in order for this to be a genuine "grass-roots administration". That is why I decided to write this diary to introduce you to the grass-roots organization web site I came across that I predict will be among the leaders in helping this movement grow and exert influence:
Change.org
[Update] This is not the Obama transition web site: Change.gov. Change.org is not affiliated directly to the Obama campaign, even if it is one kind of embodiment of Obama's message. (h/t to Slgalt for the reminder)
Here's how the web page looks:
It's interface is clean and it is easy to follow. Here is what the web site describes as its vision:
Today as citizens of the world, we face a daunting array of social and environmental problems ranging from health care and education to global warming and economic inequality. For each of these issues, whether local or global in scope, there are millions of people who care passionately about working for change but lack the information and opportunities necessary to translate their interest into effective action.
Change.org aims to address this need by serving as the central platform informing and empowering movements for social change around the most important issues of our time.
The site's "Ideas" page starts with a quote from Obama:
"I will open the doors of government and ask you to be involved in your own democracy again." -- Barack Obama
The same page even has a countdown clock to the inauguration!
Anyone who is 13 years or older can join! It also has a section for nonprofit organizations.
I got to tell you, I'm impressed. I'm not part of the Change.org team, but plan to contribute to the change that we believed in!