Youth Organizing in Georgia

Black, brown, and youth voters surged to the polls in 2020 and 2021. In response to the results, Georgia established new obstacles to voting, making it harder for people to participate in elections. To overcome these obstacles and ensure robust civic engagement, Heartland Fund sees a huge opportunity for youth organizing—and Georgia has a high share of young voters, nearly half of whom are people of color.

In 2022, we supported Collective Renaissance Georgia (CRG) to expand their scope and impact dramatically. They worked closely with Heartland Fund grantees like Black Male Voter Project and Black Voters Matter to engage young people in rural areas and small cities, support emerging leaders, and build Black political power.

CRG uses culturally resonant events to engage young voters and get them to take action together. At CRG events—held at college campuses, skating rinks, and HBCU Football Classics—young people dance to live music by artists they love and popular DJs talk about the importance of voting. It’s also a chance to ask questions and get into in-depth conversations. Many attendees registered to vote for the first time and excitedly texted their friends about how to get more involved. Building on the momentum from events, along with texting, mail, and canvassing 73,000 doors, CRG’s work helped ensure strong youth turnout in the general election.