First It Was Trump. Now It’s ‘What Trump Unleashed’ That’s Driving Young Progressives Into Political Work

Young progressive activists, once motivated by the desire to drive Donald Trump out of office, now have a different inspiration for working in politics.

Culture wars over guns, reproductive freedoms and LGBTQ rights are raging across the country – and they have become a new driving force behind enrollment at an academy where aspiring and experienced liberal campaign staffers can learn about all aspects of running campaigns, from the local to federal level.

“In a way, it is about what Trump unleashed,” Lauren Baer, managing partner at Arena, told The Messenger as part of an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the Arena Academy training program. “But it is no longer just about Trump because there are politicians in his mold in all 50 states, at every level of government right now and that is what's motivating young people to get involved.”

Arena was founded after the 2016 presidential election to support “the groundswell” of progressives getting involved in politics to oust Trump. When President Joe Biden took office, Baer said, it wasn’t clear whether young progressive activists would pursue politics with the same level of energy. 

But post-election applications to Arena Academy actually continued increasing, with spikes after significant political events such as the 2021 Georgia runoff elections, the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol and the 2022 midterm elections. They expect to train about 2,000 people during the 2024 election cycle, which would be about a 10 percent increase from the 2020 cycle. 

Many of those who apply for the training feel personally targeted by Republicans and that their freedoms are under attack, according to Arena, from anti-LGBTQ policies to the stripping of abortion rights with the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

“There’s more people that want to get involved, post-Roe,” said Iris Garcia, 28, a recent Arena Academy graduate from Texas who is looking for work on a campaign or in advocacy for reproductive rights. “I think we need to do more to get better people elected that will defend these rights.”

Young people needed on campaigns

During a recent online training, Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida, the first member of Generation Z elected to Congress, told academy participants that they’re needed in the trenches because Republican opposition is better funded and more organized than ever. 

“It’s no coincidence,” he said, that federal abortion rights and affirmative action programs in colleges have ended, that businesses can refuse to serve same-sex couples, or that Florida textbooks will talk about the “personal benefit” to being enslaved.

“It’s strategy for evil,” he said in the video viewed by The Messenger. “And this far-right fascist movement that is growing in this country and also specifically in the state of Florida, here – it requires people working on campaigns to prop up morally just candidates who actually give a damn about us.”

Democrats need young people in their corner. They were critical to the party in the 2020 and 2022 elections, but polling indicates they’re frustrated with politics – and President Joe Biden. A poll by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School found Biden had a 36% approval rating among voters under age 30, down from 41% in the spring of 2022. Meanwhile, 58% agreed that politics is no longer able to meet the country’s challenges, up from 43% in the spring of 2019.

The electorate is more “cynical” now than four years ago at this point, said John Della Volpe, director of polling at the Institute of Politics. “At the same time, no one is saying that this generation is apathetic and no one is saying that they’re not willing to do everything they can to protect the rights of the most vulnerable among us,” he said.

Arena draws applicants from communities that are most activated because they are “most targeted by right-wing extremists,” said Baer. The organization focuses on recruiting and supporting women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community. They are finding that the demand for training and need for trained staff on campaigns continues to outpace available supply.

Young people who take Arena training – typically Generation Z or younger millennials – submit personal essays about what’s motivating them to do this work, she said.

“It’s immensely personal, what’s pushing them into politics,” said Baer, a former senior Obama administration official. “But there's also just an incredible awareness that it's not just about themselves.”

Arena graduate Abby Kisicki, 24, of Illinois, survived the Highland Park July 4 parade mass shooting last year. She said was most surprised by her lack of surprise by the deadly event.

Young people like her are “constantly aware of this threat of gun violence,” she said. The Harvard poll found nearly half of young Americans indicated they felt unsafe in the past month, and 40% were concerned about falling victim to gun violence or a mass shooting. “I always kind of pictured it maybe happening,” she said. 

Getting involved in gun violence prevention activism through the Newtown Action Alliance now helps Kisicki cope with the shooting – and give a voice to the seven people who died that day, she said. Every Monday night, she and other activists call elected officials to lobby for safer gun laws. 

“We put that constant pressure out there to say, ‘Hey, People are dying. Take action,’” she said.

Another Arena graduate, 25-year-old Mason Kalinsky of Kentucky, said he’s trying to “build trans power” at the state capitol against a new law that bans gender-affirming medical care for transgender young people, prohibits them from using bathrooms matching their gender identity, and restricts classroom speech on related topics. 

“I have kids who talk to me  – they are actively suicidal because of this ban,” he said.

He said he’s been lobbying legislators, talking to school board members, and helping trans people find help and support as the legal landscape changes.

“It would be a nightmare” if Trump returned to office, said Kalinsky.

“But a lot of days, I'm not fighting for what happens January 21, 2025,” he said. “I'm fighting for what happens tomorrow.”