(with the Fellows in front of our actual bus!)

For the past four weeks, I've been working with the Washington Bus. It's been an amazing experience and I feel like I've already grown so much. As a small non-profit (they only have 12.5 full time staff member!), we work in a studio apartment turned office. It's a very open environment and i feel very comfortable there. The organizational structure is not very rigid, which makes it even more amazing the amount of tasks they get done. Everyone is extremely dedicated, which leads to a certain amount of trust between all the staff members.

Part of my job requires that I go out to Seattle fairs, festivals and activities to register voters. This is something that I had never done before and challenged me greatly. Rather, I was always the person hurrying along by people with clipboards and flyers, averting my eyes and becoming suddenly very interested in my cellphone. Now the tables are turned. It's difficult not just because I have to talk to disinterested strangers, but because some of them don't believe in voting, or are just plain rude. I don't really know how to respond to people who tell me that they don't believe in voting and furthermore I don't really know how I can actually start to enjoy and be good at registering voters. 

Essentially, I still have lots to learn about people's different ideologies and how to reconcile my own views with those of others. The Washington Bus is great in that perspective in getting me out of my comfort zone and getting to know more about the world. 

Annie Yang
Duke Student '16
Chris
7/28/2013 04:29:04 pm

I too have a difficult time willing myself to talk to random people on the street, especially people who might not be particularly receptive to the message I'm trying to spread. When someone says that they don't believe in voting, what sort of reasoning (if any) do they typically give?

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