Politicians, celebrities and group leaders have repeatedly instilled the importance of voting, but none have ever done it as creatively as Harlem Democracy Prep’s fourth-graders. In a YouTube video “Vote for Somebody, which parodies Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe,” the students outline that as an American, it’s your “civic duty” to vote on Nov. 6.
With almost 300,000 views, the song has gone viral. Appearing on “Anderson Live” and “Hardball with Chris Matthews,” it’s hard to believe that this school was listed as one of the worst elementary schools citywide only a year ago. Seth Anderson, the superintendent of Harlem Democracy Prep middle schools, decided to take over Harlem Day Charter elementary school with all its currents students. The school was expected to close after low test scores, but as of 2012, the school is listed in the top 96 percent of schools citywide.
Harlem Democracy Prep currently has over 2,000 student enrolled in seven locations. Their motto is “Work Hard, Go to College, Change the World,” and there is no doubt that they will do just that.
“Vote for Somebody” can be viewed online at http://youtu.be/EVkfNUxRh7g.