Home » Netroots Nation Scholarships » Paulin Thakore
Scholarship Application Public Information
Paulin Thakore
| Name: | Paulin Thakore |
| Location: | Stone Mountain, GA |
My personal volunteering highlight:
The T-shirt story.
Around August 2008, I noticed that Senator Obama was accused of having terrorist ties & being a foreigner, which was ridiculous. I felt I had to make a strong statement of support for Obama for President. I went to a T-shirt store and designed my own Obama T-shirt. I had the famous red,white,& blue campaign image of Obama on the front of the shirt, but with the word HOPE cut out. I felt that can be misinterpreted as hippie-like in GA and could be framed as a stance against Obama. Then on the back of the shirt typed in bold: "OBAMA IS MY AMERICAN PRESIDENT". I chose this strong statement to affirm that Obama is American & quell the questions of his experience & qualifications. Before I got laid-off, I traveled for my job, flying back from the client site NY to home in Atlanta. So I wore this shirt one Friday afternoon flying to ATL from NY. I noticed that TSA security in the NY airport were following me to my gate until they got up close to read my shirt & smiled in support then walked away. Then I realized being Indian-American often mistaken for an Arab male flying by myself in a NY airport wearing a shirt that has in bold "American President" & the name Obama which from a distance can be mistaken for Osama can cause misunderstandings. When I landed in the Atl,GA; even though I was silent, my shirt was giving a very load energy at baggage claim. Some people complimented with my shirt, while others look at my shirt skeptical, probably thought my shirt was anti-American with the name Osama, but when they got closer they discover my shirt has a Patriotic statement for Senator Obama. And due to self-fulfilling prophecy of my shirt, Obama is now my American President. More statements of strength & confounding the perception of being anti-American like my T-shirt are needed in the Democratic Party. And I can contribute.
What motivates me:
The struggles of everyday people.
How I try to motivate others:
To find common ground and build on commonalities while able to celebrate differences. This would be done with creative, yet strong, statements.
My suggested bumper sticker slogan for the Stand with Dr. Dean campaign:
Pro-Health Care is Pro-Life.
Blogging
I run/manage these blogs:
My FaceBook page
Check out my writing sample(s):
(Find Post #20 under my name) http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=7774036261&topic=6961&ref=mf
(Find Post #14 under my name) http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=20778076336&topic=4552&ref=mf
Participation in the blogosphere is important because...
You can't change anything if you don't participate.
A Little Bit About Paulin Thakore
I'm a Indian-American from Atlanta, GA. I grew up in working class neighborhood. And paid for my college education by working the night shift at UPS.
Why I Deserve a Scholarship to Attend
I can add a southern voice to NetRoots. I also can add the voice of the "other" minority as a Asian-Indian-American. I also can add the perspective of the working-class. I have degrees in economics,engineering,sociology, & political science. I worked as an IT consultant then I was laid-off due to the sagging economy. I can bring a myriad of experiences to NetRoots.
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