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Know Your Voting Rights

Today is the 47th anniversary of the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

In his remarks, President Lyndon B. Johnson said:

This act flows from a clear and simple wrong. Its only purpose is to right that wrong. Millions of Americans are denied the right to vote because of their color. This law will ensure them the right to vote. The wrong is one which no American, in his heart, can justify. The right is one which no American, true to our principles, can deny.

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This right to vote is the basic right without which all others are meaningless. It gives people, people as individuals, control over their own destinies.

Forty-seven years later, states have enacted new legal barriers that could make it harder for five million eligible voters to exercise the basic right of our democracy. The most burdensome change requires voters to show an acceptable form of photo ID in order to vote.

In Pennsylvania, for instance, a new analysis of the impact of the state’s voter ID law found that in Philadelphia, the birthplace of our democracy, voters in predominantly African American precincts are 85 percent more likely to lack a PennDOT ID than voters in predominantly white precincts.

So with the clock ticking, the Cost of Freedom Project has partnered with the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and The Andrew Goodman Foundation to educate voters about the new photo ID requirements.

The Cost of Freedom App is a web-based solution to help voters cut through the confusion and quickly navigate a voter ID application process that’s disenfranchising by design.

The public awareness campaign will be powered by social media, as well as traditional media. Voter education materials will be distributed at town hall meetings, policy forums and other community events.

To get involved in this voter empowerment campaign, send an email to Cost of Freedom Project.

Get Ready

Election Day is 97 days away. What are you doing to get ready?

Election Day is 100 Days Away

Foot Soldiers for Democracy

Election Day is 125 days away. It’s not too early to ask: What are you doing November 6?

If the past is prologue, young black voters will be at their polling place. In 2010 and 2008, African Americans had the highest turnout rate among voters aged 18-24.

Young black voters also turned out for the recall election in Wisconsin. The Nation reported:

Turnout was up dramatically, so much so that on election day election clerks had to be shifted to predominantly African-American wards.

While young black voters will turn out in November, the new election laws will make it harder for them to vote. From Florida (again) to the mess in Texas, the right to vote is under assault.

The new voter ID requirements will disproportionately impact minority and young voters. Studies show 25 percent of African Americans do not have government-issued photo ID. In Wisconsin, for instance, 78 percent of black men between the ages of 18 and 24 do not have a driver’s license.

On the eve of Independence Day, Black Youth Vote!, a signature program of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, is looking for a few good men to get involved with Foot Soldiers for Democracy.

Foot Soldiers will recruit and train at least 100 young black men to serve as poll workers or poll monitors. Their goal is to:

• Remove barriers to the ballot box
• Ensure that every vote is counted
• Raise awareness of the new voting restrictions and
• Push back against organized efforts to challenge voters’ eligibility to cast a ballot.

To get involved in this nonpartisan election protection initiative, contact William Kellibrew, NCBCP’s deputy director, or send a tweet to @BYVFootSoldiers.