Barack Obama supporters, UW-Madison students and city residents alike, attended the Barack the Block"" party on the 100 block of East Mifflin Saturday.
The block party, sponsored by Café Montmartre, featured various speakers, comedians and musical entertainment throughout the day. Attendees could also register to vote, donate money, find future volunteer opportunities with the campaign and buy an assortment of Obama paraphernalia.
Local John Urban hosted the event. Speakers included former Madison mayor Paul Soglin, state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, and state Reps. Mark Miller, D-Monona, Spencer Black and Mark Pocan, D-Madison.
The idea for the block party arose when resident Linda Massey and her fellow coordinators were watching the convention.
""We were sitting there thinking, 'This guy has to win. Let's do something about it,'"" Massey said.
The layout of the event was different than standard political rallies. Typically, rallies are numerous speeches in succession. According to Massey, the combination of music and informative speeches appealed to a greater demographic.
""Kids today - give them free music and cheap T-shirts and they show up,"" she said.
The ""Barack the Block"" party caught the attention of a wide range of residents. Danielle Harms of Sun Prairie, stopped by because she ""wanted to know what issues people are talking about on the streets."" Harms supports the campaign by working for a democratic congressman and she jokes she ""bombards people with Obama propaganda.""
In addition to the audience and event volunteers, the entertainers provided their services to help the campaign. Kevin Wade, of the band Dick the Bruiser, said performing at the block party was a ""good way to show [his] support of the ticket.""
""Instead of making phone calls or going door to door [I have] a band, so why not help?"" Wade said. Both Harms and Wade maintain that the most effective way to get involved is to vote.
