As difficult as it may be for some to pay to enroll in college these days, it may be more difficult to graduate ... without a job.
Groups representing the generation of students and graduates facing that prospect announced on Thursday a policy agenda for their group, 80 Million Strong For Young American Jobs, a collaborative organization fighting for legislation to create and sustain new jobs. The coalition -- which is named for the 80 million members of the "millennial" generation -- is supported by three organizations representing young people. In a teleconference Thursday, the movement's creators spoke about the pressing problem at hand and 80 Million Strong's legislative plan of action.
"Unemployment numbers are looking grim for our generation, so we seek to a maintain a positive and innovative outlook on these problems," said Maya Enista, co-chair of 80 Million Strong and CEO of mobilize.org. "We think young people can solve these problems."
Matthew Segal, co-chair of 80 Million Strong and executive director of the Student Association for Voter Empowerment, listed four main legislative goals for the organization during Thursday's teleconference:
The coalition will discuss and approve more concrete plans of action at its national summit in Washington next month.