The New York Times, February 4, 2008, Monday
Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
The New York Times
Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section B; Column 0; Metropolitan Desk; Pg. 1
BYLINE: By DIANE CARDWELL
BODY:
At 3 o'clock one morning last February, Jordan Thomas, a 37-year-old actor-turned-filmmaker, woke up in his Brooklyn apartment and headed for the computer. Inspired by Barack Obama's star-making speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, Mr. Thomas had been paying close attention to the Illinois senator, and was now eager to catch the online announcement about how to join his presidential effort.
Impressed by Mr. Obama's sophisticated new Web site, which allowed users to start their own organizations, Mr. Thomas created Brooklyn for Barack, a group that drew 70 members in its first day and has now become critical to the senator's New York state campaign. From a storefront nestled between a Popeye's and a nightclub in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Mr. Thomas, a political novice, is now coordinating a loose constellation of groups throughout the borough, with its rich supply of registered Democrats.
''It's deeply personal,'' Mr. Thomas said of his involvement, speaking in an interview at a cafe in Fort Greene, an artsy, racially mixed neighborhood that he said was a natural fit for Mr. Obama. Mr. Thomas, who grew up in Riverdale, in the Bronx, and was among a handful of black students at the Horace Mann School there, continued: ''He's got this dramatic tale of inhabiting different worlds, and I think on a smaller scale, I've been required to do that.''
More than perhaps any other candidate this cycle, Mr. Obama is relying heavily on grass-roots support from volunteers like Mr. Thomas and his counterparts, who are lavishing special attention on predominantly black or left-leaning neighborhoods from Buffalo and Rochester to Harlem and Long Island. In New York, because the Democrats award delegates proportionally by Congressional district, a strong showing in certain areas could help Mr. Obama, even if he loses the primary.
Indeed, Mr. Thomas said that the people he has spoken with had been more receptive to voting for Mr. Obama once they realized that their votes could allow him to win enough delegates to put him over the top at the Democratic National Convention in August.
To capitalize on that, Mr. Thomas and his band of volunteers are busy trying to sway as many potential supporters as they can, working late into the night at the spartan campaign offices, borrowed from a local Democratic club. On Wednesday shortly before 6 p.m., Mr. Thomas was at a small table there, working two cellphones and a laptop, culling acceptable postings for the group's Listserv while keeping track of a hodgepodge of logistical issues.
A dozen workers, also armed with cellphones and laptops, were fanned out at plastic folding tables around the room. Some were calling in reinforcements to canvass over the weekend and work the polls on Tuesday. Others, after grabbing a cookie or a cold Buffalo chicken wing from a table up front, were organizing the next day's trips to centers for the elderly, folding literature to be handed out or creating lists of volunteers to be contacted.
One volunteer, Susanne Lyn, 45, burst in to show off some signs she made to use at subway stops during rush hour. Drawing devilish oohs from some of the other volunteers and a tolerant chuckle from Mr. Thomas, the signs promoted Mr. Obama as the fresh new choice with language like, ''That was then,'' and ''Been there, done that,'' over images of Hillary and Bill Clinton on one side and ''We need this now'' and ''Barack the vote'' on the other.
Later, Lloyd Porter, 37, a friend of Mr. Thomas's who owns Bread Stuy, a nearby cafe, stopped in. Since he had access to a car, he wondered, should he go have materials copied, cut literature that had already arrived or, ''grab some food'' for the troops?
''Food would be good,'' Mr. Thomas said softly, with an easy smile. ''I don't want to ask for more than you're offering. Maybe some paninis? We got coffee, we got water. I appreciate it, man.''
Mr. Thomas, a C-Span junkie since age 14, said that he had no idea that his late-night Web posting would lead him to the center of such a do-it-yourself campaign, but that he had been drawn to Mr. Obama in part by his ability to reconcile seemingly conflicting ideas.
''I think that what he's showing people is that the world is larger and smaller at the same time than we realize, and more complex,'' Mr. Thomas said. ''He doesn't easily give in to the idea of mutual exclusivity. Like yes, people should take care of themselves, and yes, it is his view and my view that the government should do something to make sure that people have the opportunity to take care of themselves.''
A child of educators, Mr. Thomas said he never felt entirely comfortable in any of the worlds he inhabited growing up. After graduating from high school, he attended Cornell and studied industrial labor relations -- why, he said, laughing, he could no longer remember -- but found himself drawn to acting once he graduated. He appeared in several Off Broadway shows, he said, and then attended the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco for three years.
But he became disenchanted with the business, he said, and began writing his own character studies and working for a small film production company, where he hopes to finish developing a story he would act in. ''I loved acting, but not at all costs,'' he said, ''and I felt like if I had more control over the process that I'd be able to create some characters, create some stories that would speak to me a little bit more than what I saw.''
Set in Fort Greene, the story is not based directly on his experiences on the campaign, but has been influenced by Mr. Obama and his thinking.
''There's something about this progressive neighborhood that's very diverse, that reminds me of Obama,'' Mr. Thomas said. ''I could just see him walking through here.''
URL: http://www.nytimes.com
GRAPHIC: PHOTO: Jordan Thomas said his involvement in Barack Obama's campaign is ''deeply personal.'' (PHOTOGRAPH BY JOSH HANER/THE NEW YORK TIMES) (pg. B4)
LOAD-DATE: February 4, 2008
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