Kokayi Nosakhere

The Million Man March, on October 16, 1995, completed my political radicalization. I was already radicalized due to a childhood of poverty, but after the March I understood that overcoming my own limitations was not enough. I needed to go one step beyond and assist in the transformation of the community which birthed me.

Toward that end, I have so far been faithful. I began my career working with children. I have been on the frontlines of every child-related industry in Anchorage. This included caring for newborns inside of a Salvation Army Shelter. As a 270 pound African American man, this memory stands out as one of the most rewarding.

Following a stint inside the McLaughlin Youth Detention Center, I switched toward more systematic reform. I became employed with the Anchorage Urban League because I wanted to tackle the basic problems which support citizens existing in states of poverty. I joined the Young Professionals to assist in a cutting-edge voter registration / community-building project called OurTime 2008, which is about to come to a close with the National Elections.

When I am not at work, I am spending a tremendous amount of time organizing the Mountain View and Fairview communities along more productive lines. So much political power resides with people who do not know how to USE that power to benefit where they live. I and my friends, through an education campaign, will teach them how to USE that power.