"Citizen participation is a lot easier than people think it is."

Beth! Orcutt

When Citizen Works sponsored Big Business Day, Beth! Orcutt and her organization, People over Profit, sponsored Big Business Week. Then again, Beth! isn't much on the whole moderation thing. Even her name (yes, the exclamation point is intentional) reveals an undeniable zest for life.

"She is incredibly energetic," said Mary Catherine Plunkett, also a member of People over Profit and a fellow senior at the University of Georgia in Athens.

Over the past year, that energy has been used for good. Besides the recent week of lectures, teach-ins, and films to educate people about the dangers of corporate power, Beth! and People over Profit have also sponsored a series of events called "Globalization for Dummies," participated in a number of anti-war rallies, and held a small film festival.

"Citizen participation is a lot easier than people think it is," said Beth!, 21. "People think they're not going to have much of an effect, but I've learned it's much easier to get across your point and it's not really that scary."

Still, it hasn't always been easy work engaging people. Take the time that Beth! and a few friends set up tables in front of the student center, asking everyone to call their senators to oppose Fast Track. No one did.

"We had our cell phones out, we would even dial the number," she said. "The majority of people had never called their senator before. They would say, 'that sounds creepy, I don't know what to say.' They were like, 'why would we do that, my senator doesn't want to hear from me.'" The post card drive went much better.

From D.C. to Athens

Beth!'s activist odyssey began in earnest last January in the shadow of the Bush inauguration. It was there, among the myriad groups and causes gathered to protest, that Beth's! general dissatisfication with corporate rule metamorphisized into focused activism.

"It was very empowering and very educational," she said. "There was so much organized dissent going on, and I felt like it was something we needed to start in Athens. I really liked the whole synergy of all those people coming together, having a common voice, and also for me, personally, I felt very much like I was doing my job as a citizen there in D.C., with all those government buildings. I felt like I was making my voice heard."

Back in Athens, Beth! began a more activist lifestyle. At an April 20, 2001 World Bank/IMF solidarity action around campus, she took an open megaphone to propose that a group meet regularly to start talking about global trade, the World Bank, and the WTO and figure out how to explain the issues. A few supporters gave her e-mail addresses. People over Profit was born.

"We made some pamphlets, talking about what is the FTAA, in common terms, including real examples," she said. "We went to a flea market outside of Athens every week, and brought them pamphlets. And that was a real eye-opening experience. A lot of people coming to the flea markets are working class, and they really seemed to connect with exploitation of consumers by corporations." These days, the group meets regularly, planning events, figuring out how to make the problems of globalization simple and accessible, and trying to develop a good reputation on campus.

"You need to make it seem fun," she said. "It's really hard to get somebody to listen to you if they think you're going to lecture them. You need to make it seem like something interesting. At People over Profit, we're very fortunate to have people being really good graphic designers, who spend a long time making promotional materials. There are tons of things going on at the University, and they're all boring to look at. We need to make it eye capturing."

Internally, Beth!'s engaging leadership has kept the group together.

"She also very much wants to listen to what everybody has to say and keeps everyone on task," Mary Catherine said. "She has a really nice blend of making everybody feel comfortable in a group, but is very good about getting things done - prioritizing, how to divide up tasks so that everything comes togther. She's good at reminding people in a nice, curteous way."

In her other life, Beth! is a student of marine geochemistry, about to embark on a PhD at the University of Georgia to study how bacteria from the bottom of the ocean survive. She also DJs on the campus radio station, WUOG (90.5). Her show, "Who put the Bomp" higlights forgotten '50s and '60s music with an emphasis on surf.

A busy schedule indeed, but Beth! says she makes times for the things that are important to her. "People say, 'you spend so much time' or 'I never have the time'" Beth! said. "For me personally, this is something I care about passionately, that's why I do it. I feel like I would be selling myself out if there were things that I disagreed with and I didn't do anything. Being an activist is my way of saying 'hey, listen up, this is important and I really want you to know about it and do something about it.'"