Remember to Encourage Those Around You to Register to Vote
I learned Tuesday, Sept. 19 marked National Voter Registration Day, and while you’re likely reading this past that date, if you’re like me with most holidays, you’ll lean into celebrating far beyond the actual day of observance.
The ability to vote is one of the most important American rights, for which many groups – from African Americans to women – fought.
First, voting allows for people to participate in working to resolve issues in their communities. From local to national elections, voting for a candidate that you believe is looking out for the best interests of the communities you care about is important. Voting can offer your views a platform to thrive and be shared with others. Even if you’re not the one making laws, or speaking to lawmakers for that matter, or even if your candidate doesn’t win, voting shows an investment in the future of your community, the nation, and the world.
Moreover, consider all those that made voting a possibility for you. While the original Constitution only permitted white males over the age of 21 to vote, activists — from Frederick Douglass to Susan B. Anthony and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — have made it so that U.S. citizens over the age of 18 “cannot be denied the right to vote on the basis of race, religion, sex, disability, or sexual orientation.”
“The path to full voting rights for all American citizens was long and often challenging. The franchise was first extended to African Americans under the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution, passed during the Reconstruction period after the Civil War. These amendments provided that all male citizens, regardless of their race, must receive equal treatment under the law and not be deprived of their rights without due process,” the White House said in a statement. “The Fifteenth Amendment is specifically dedicated to protecting the right of all citizens to vote, regardless of race.”
In 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment granted women the right to vote.
Despite all the progress, there are still groups, such as people with prior justice system involvement, who still are fighting for voting rights. Some states even criminalize people who have been involved with the justice system, for attempting to register to vote.
While the District of Columbia is leading in rights for those currently or formerly involved in the justice system – allowing incarcerated residents to vote – there’s still work to be done in nearby states such as Virginia.
Considering the battles fought to obtain the vote, and the progress still necessary, it’s important that we remind the people around us the importance of not only registering to vote, but actually participating in our civic duty when the time comes.
Ensure that you and eligible friends and family are registered in the correct jurisdiction, now, that way, there are no surprises when showing up to place a ballot. Also, remind your loved ones they’re not allowed to complain about how their town, city, state or federal government is run if they don’t vote, or don’t even care to register to do so.
The right to vote is a special one, and we should celebrate and be thankful for that ability, if we have it. Further, we must be mindful of and valiantly fight for those whose voices can’t be heard through the vote, and fight until they too, have the right.