Joe Rhymer

Name: Joe Rhymer Location: bristol, TN An Organizer working within the intersections of Faith, Equality, Race and Class Issues to make the world a better place in Rural Tennessee

A little about me

I'm a Social Justice Fanatic, tell me where Inequality is and I'm THERE to Advocate and Dialogue! I work full time in Telecommunications AND help as a caregiver for my aging grandparents and the rest of my family who struggle w/ learning disabilities AND work w/ my local NAACP, PFLAG, TN Equality Project chapters, United Methodist Church, HIV/AIDS Issues, and city government

I would describe myself as a

commenter

Why I deserve a Netroots Nation Scholarship

I am trying to build something from nothing in the land that time forgot in my state. To build this organizing structure I must have the best understanding of the best tools the web has to offer.

I manage these blogs

TEP's Grand Divisions

The blogs I use most are

Shuck and Jive
Queers United

What first inspired me to get involved

My Faith tradition taught me that we all have to work to make the world a better place, Mother Teresa was always my idol and she didn't ask questions...she saw a need and she stepped out to meet that need

How I've gotten others involved

I have turned so many of my profiles into billboards for social justice issues: my facebook, twitter, myspace, lifeout, gay.com profiles have become newsfeeds of actions peeps can take to improve the state of things in our world...I try to show that it is not something to do one day but EVERY DAY

Why I think participation in the blogosphere is important

The blogosphere is where people are getting their news because it has less bias than the corporate news networks do and its easier to verify sources on my own. It builds community because I can personally know the reporter and others who care about the same issues I do.

More about my involvement with DFA and local work

I paid my dues but there is no local DFA network in my community due to a "closet liberal" culture in my part of the country.

More about my volunteer work

I am the Tricities committee chair and East Tennessee Coordinator for the Tennessee Equality Project and sit on our board of directors, I am on our local NAACP chapter's health committee, I am helping to plan our area's first AIDS walk, my cell serves as the contact number for our PFLAG chapter, I sing in my local United Methodist Church's choir and am reviewing TEP and my church's webpages as well as building the first one for our NAACP chapter, I helped to found another PFLAG chapter an hour north of us, I volunteer in a local soup kitchen and with Big Brothers/Big Sisters...

My Twitter manifesto on online activism

Online activism allows for wider dispersion of information to interested parties, "slacktivists" we may be but we are engaged in MANY issues whereas others have been historically limited

My suggested bumper sticker slogan

Get your Government out of my Marriage!

My idea for a cool new online action

I like online actions coupled w/ live actions, let me sign a petition but you have to post a video or some photos of that click translating to a stack of petitions or a meeting...