upworthy

vote

via dllegrande / Instagram

Earlier this month, Cajun fried-chicken restaurant Popeyes rolled out its first nationwide chicken sandwich, and it kicked off a heated debate on social media: Which chicken sandwich is better, Popeyes or Chick-fil-A?

The sandwich is getting rave reviews for its large friend chicken breast, brioche bun, and two pickles.

People have been flocking to Popeyes to find out for themselves and many are experiencing long lines or can't get the sandwich because its sold out.


While the folks at Popeyes are obviously seeing dollar signs, 17-year-old David Ledbetter saw it as an opportunity to create social change.

On Saturday, Ledbetter took advantage of the long lines at a Popeyes in Charlotte, North Carolina by asking people to register to vote as they waited. According to reports, he was able to register 16 people.

RELATED: 7 secrets to raising awesome, functional teenagers

"I decided to register people to vote after I saw there was a lack of young people politically involved," Ledbetter told CNN. "I believe that it is our duty to vote as American citizens and it would be wrong not to exercise our political voice."

Ledbetter came up with the idea after talking with Stephanie Sneed, an attorney running for a position on the local school board.

RELATED: NRA lobbyist asking how to tell a 10-year-old she can't have her pink assault rifle is peak NRA

"Because he's young, he has a new perspective on candidates engaging with young people," Sneed said. "He's already engaged and it's in his makeup."

"I like engaging with the community and I have aspirations with helping people and making society better as a whole," Ledbetter said.

Ledbetter is setting a great example for his fellow North Carolinians by encouraging them to register to vote. North Carolina is a swing state that'll be pivotal in the 2020 election. In 2016, Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton 49.8% to 46.2% in the state.

Joe Biden has a large lead amongst Democrats in the state, polling at 37.5%. Bernie Sanders (18.5%) and Elizabeth Warren (14%) round off the top three.

Biden also wins in a hypothetical matchup versus Trump in North Carolina. Real Clear Politics has Biden with a 51.3% to 43.7% lead.

For people who saw Hillary Clinton as a much needed step forward for equality in this country, this week's loss was devastating.

When the 2016 presidential election results came in around 3 a.m. Eastern time on Nov. 9, many people were hit with waves of emotion as this dramatic election cycle came to a close.

What would come next for America?


Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images.

Today, many people are grieving. But if you look around you, you'll also see people doing something remarkable: They aren't giving up.

Many folks have taken to social media to share beautiful and heart-wrenching but above all actionable words of resolve this week. These are people who still believe we're "stronger together," and they are standing tall. They're showing the nation that we will not be pushed down so easily.

So if you're feeling scared or angry or confused or sad, that's OK. It's important to take time to process the blow. But then, stand back up. The fight is not over. In fact, it's only just begun.

Here are five messages from fellow supporters that might help you get there:

1. This woman is feeling more resolved then ever to keep fighting.

"This hurts like hell, but I'm not giving up and I'm not going anywhere and I'm not going to be quiet. I'm staying right here in this goddamned country and I'm going to keep on standing up and speaking out and fighting even harder for our friends and neighbors and all people who don't feel like they have a voice, who deserve respect, who need love and support, who need to know that they're not going to be abandoned. Photo via libbyvanderploeg/Instagram, used with permission.

2. Another is trying to help others while simultaneously looking out for her own mental health.

Thank you to "the helpers" who have literally kept me alive for the past 24 hours- And of course the love of my life,...

Posted by Annie P. Ruggles on Wednesday, November 9, 2016

3. And, in the midst of fearing for this country, this man wants everyone to know he's first and foremost an ally.

While the country votes red from the center out like cancer, while you feel fear, you feel opressed, while we feel shame...

Posted by Brian Morvant on Tuesday, November 8, 2016

4. Christina learned words of hope and action can come to us in many ways. Even via text.

Sister love and wisdom and hope. #sistertherapy #love #hope #staystrong

A photo posted by @jaclynspoleti on

5. And, in the face of feeling like "them" again, this Middle-Eastern American man simply asks others to have empathy.

I'm an American born non-practicing Muslim and Middle Eastern American. I was born in the Bronx and raised in NYC and...

Posted by Mehdi Barakchian on Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Emotions only take us so far. In the coming weeks, action is the next step.

As Clinton said in her concession speech, "This loss hurts. But please never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it."

It's not going to be easy, but we're not doing this alone.

Transitioning from optimist to activist.

Posted by Abbie Harper on Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Most parents agree that our children are our future. But weirdly, statistics show that a lot of us don't actually vote.

Photo via iStock.

It turns out that having young children actually makes people a little bitless likely to get to the polls on Election Day.


There could be a lot of reasons for this, from parents having less time to stay up to date on the campaigns and issues to just the general chaotic nature of raising tiny humans.

But whatever the reason, it's really, really important for us to teach our kids how all of this works. Some research has even shown that kids often get their views on politics and civic engagement from watching their parents. So if we don't vote, it could be the beginning of a vicious cycle.

Justin Ruben, cofounder of the organization Parents Together, has a good idea for how to fix this strange phenomenon, though: parent-kid voting selfies!

Ruben's mission is, broadly, to help parents navigate all the challenges of raising kids. Trying to figure out how to stand in a 45-minute voting line with a screaming toddler is definitely a big one.

So he and his organization recently launched a campaign called #FamilyVote, encouraging parents to take their kids with them to the polls and post photos of the outing on social media.

"It felt like we were tapping into one of the most powerful forces on the internet, parents making other people look at their kids." he joked. "We want to take that and harness it for social change."

The idea? Fill everyone's feed with cute family pictures on Election Day, encouraging other stressed out parents to join in on the fun. It's called social pressure.

The #FamilyVote photos started pouring in during early voting and haven't stopped since.

Here are a few to get you feeling super pumped about the beautiful families that make up America.

Here are mom and dad Belinda and Alex Reyes along with their kids, Gabriel, Vidal, and Sofia.

Photo by Belinda Reyes, used with permission.

Tawaualla Foley said sharing this important election with her kids was one of the proudest moments of her life. "I was filled with so much joy," she said.

Photo by Tawaualla Foley, used with permission.

Jon Whiten and his wife took their young son to the polls. "Today, there were lessons we imparted all the way up and down the ballot," he said.

"It's important to me and my wife that we instill some core democratic values in our son as he starts to grow."

Photo by Jon Whiten, used with permission.

"Though all elections are historical, this one feels especially significant to me as a Hispanic female," said Denise Rivera, who voted with her 4-year-old son.

She was so giddy and excited to vote, she said, that her son asked her on the way to the polls if Hillary Clinton was Michael Jackson.

Photo by Denise Rivera, used with permission.

Kelli Soyer said, "It's important my daughter knows she has a voice and to use it."

She also said she wants to really talk about the candidates and what they stand for with her daughter, so that when she turns 18, she'll be an educated voter.

Photo by Kelli Soyer, used with permission.

And the photos just keep coming in from families all over the country.

Photo by Parents Together, used with permission.

Photo by Parents Together, used with permission.

Photo by Parents Together, used with permission.

Photo by Parents Together, used with permission.

"If we want parents' voices to be heard, we need to participate," Ruben said.

And so far, the project seems to be working. Ruben said a dry run during the primaries in the spring showed that, as simple as it sounds, this selfie campaign was hugely effective at inspiring parents to go vote.

And now, on Election Day, he says the photos are pouring in by the hundreds, with the hashtag spreading far beyond his organization's usual network. That's awesome.

So get out there, America, and take your kids with you if possible.

They might be pumped to join you in the booth, or they might whine and complain the whole way. You won't know 'til you get there! Building a better America for our kids starts now.

People have already turned out to vote in the 2016 election in record numbers, and many are hoping their efforts will elect the first female president of the United States.

Those who were alive when women didn't even have the right to vote are proudly casting their ballots in the name of busting through yet another glass ceiling.

It's inspiring that tons of people are coming out to vote. But what's even more inspiring is how many are dedicating their vote to women who've touched their lives on a more personal level.  

People took to Twitter using #DedicateYourVoteToAWoman to share their dedications.


Some shouted out their grandmothers whose perseverance they always admired. Others mentioned their daughters for whom they hope their vote will help realize a better future.

Here are 11 incredible examples of people sharing why their vote means so much for progress.

1. This godmother dedicated her vote to her super goddaughter.

2. This husband dedicated his vote to a woman he loves and admires (his wife ... duh).

3. This person voted in honor of a woman who burst through another glass ceiling — Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman to be elected to Congress.

4. And here's an incredible dedication to a badass grandma and nana.

5. This daughter lost her mother six years ago. She thought voting for another woman who never quits was a fitting homage.

6. This man dedicated his vote to the millions of women in Saudi Arabia who need support now more than ever.

7. And this woman who followed that up by giving hers to a woman in Haiti who lost everything.

8. This woman cast her ballot for all the undocumented mothers who fear a Trump presidency more than most.

9. With this election rife with incidents of sexual assault, this woman dedicate her vote to all women suffering (often in silence).

10. This dedication is for the women whose progress was thwarted by a misogynistic world.

11. And finally, a dedication to all the women who sacrificed themselves so that we can have this privilege today.

A woman in the White House would mean we've made significant progress in the name of equality.

This win for progress is captured most succinctly in these posts.

If one woman can take the most powerful seat in the country, it paves a much smoother path for all women — past, present, and future — to break through our own glass ceilings.