For the past year I have worked as an intern with Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. I’ve learned a great deal from it. I now have a better understanding of community organizing, citizen lobbying, and Kentucky politics. The experience introduced me to issues that I wasn’t aware of and showed me many aspects of Kentucky that I didn’t know about.
Seeing Kentucky politics up close was often an eye opener. While I intellectually understood the that special interest groups control our state government I didn’t fully understand it until I saw it up close. As I write this the coal industry quickly jumps to mind. Each day in Eastern Kentucky mountains are destroyed by coal companies in order to extract coal. Its a cheap and effective way to mine coal and make exuberant profits. This comes at the cost of Eastern Kentucky’s natural beauty. It also destroys the streams in the area and displaces the homes of many the area residents.
Eastern Kentucky’s legislators are among the strongest defenders of MTR. They are often bankrolled by the coal companies. For years they have blocked any legislation that would limit MTR and have ensured that other legislators turn a blind eye to it. KFTC works against this.
This year we managed to get a stream saver bill before a committee, but it failed to make it out. But just the fact that it was heard was major step forward. We brought tons of people to Frankfort to lobby their legislators and to put pressure on our leaders. The experience showed me what can be accomplished with citizen activism, but that we still have along way to go.
I never understood what community organizers did until my internship. I had always assumed that it was the equivalent to activism. It’s not. Organizer do not simply go and advocate for an issue. They go into communities and work with the people in them to help bring about the changes they want to see. An organizer facilitates and coordinates but doesn’t lead. KFTC does this. Members not staff speak for the organization.
KFTC is complety membership driven. The members decide what we work on and how we do it. In twenty five years other organizations have come and gone, while KFTC had grown to over 5, 000 members and has expanded into central Kentucky, Louisville, and many other places. New chapters are developing in western Kentucky and older ones are growing.
I would recommend this internship to anyone who is concerned about social, economic, and environmental justice. It taught me a great deal about the problems Kentucky faces and how we can bring change. I loved it and will continue to work with KFTC for as long as I can.
