The nation’s capital will see yet another march this Saturday.
Citing the current job rates as their motivation, supporters of the coalition One Nation Working Together will gather at the Lincoln Memorial to rally for jobs and education.
According to statistics released by the U.S. Census Bureau, one in seven Americans lives in poverty. That makes the third consecutive year the nation has seen an increase in poverty statistics.
“One Nation Working Together aims to recommit every person in the United States to the principles that this nation was founded upon,” the coalition said in a press release. “This means that every person who wants to work should have a secure job with a living wage, equal protection under the law, and access to a quality public education for all children.”
The coalition expects attendance in the hundreds of thousands. The One Nation Working Together Rally will begin at 11 a.m.
Despite reports from some media outlets that Saturday’s rally will be an opposition march to September’s Tea Party rally, the organization insists divisive politics is not the motivation.
“This is a non-partisan rally,” said Jessica Pierce, director of the National Youth division. “It is not a response to the Tea Party in any way.”
“Our intention is to present a united front as American people and hold our legislators accountable for the current state of the job market and education,” Pierce said. “People want change, and they are not getting the change they expected to see a year ago.”
Although Pierce claims the march will be non-partisan, several liberal groups such as the NAACP, the National Council of La Raza and the AFL-CIO are sponsoring the event.
“One Nation is a movement of everyday people who are marching to reclaim our fundamental right to the American dream,” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, president of the NAACP.
Unlike the previous rallies, One Nation is encouraging more young people to attend Saturday’s march.
“We want youth to be at the forefront of this issue,” Pierce said. “They need to know that they are affected by this as well, especially since the average debt of a college graduate is $23,000.”
In an effort to draw in more young people, One Nation will hold a Youth Leader Rally at Freedom Plaza, 14thStreet and Pennsylvania Avenue, before the march. Along with guest speakers, the youth rally will also have a voter registration table for the attendees.
“We want them to be educated voters,” Pierce said. “It’s not just about being informed on the issue; they need to take that info to the voting booth.”
In addition to the youth rally, One Nation will also host peace and immigration rallies along the National Mall.
