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The voting rights of thousands of Black New Orleanians are about to be trampled.
On April 22nd, New Orleans will hold its first mayoral election since the storm.
For most who evacuated, predominantly Black and poor, voting will be so difficult
and impractical that it makes you wonder if election officials want them to vote at all.<1>
Satellite voting, which would provide out-of-state polling places for evacuees,
is the one viable solution that would provide the largest number of evacuees a
reasonable opportunity to vote. But politicians controlling the elections,
including Gov. Blanco, have refused to provide it.
Everyone, including the Governor, knows that without additional measures,
the Black vote will be suppressed and the ability for Black New Orleanians to claim
their future will be compromised.
Please join us in calling on Governor Blanco to protect the voting rights
of Katrina survivors by providing satellite voting.
http://colorofchange.org/voting
With thousands of Black folks gone from New Orleans, some candidates see an
opportunity for political gain and want a permanent shift in the demographics
of the city. Keeping it hard for Black New Orleanians to vote is another step
towards pushing them out and gentrifying the city.
During the Iraqi elections,
our government set up polling places in the United States so that Iraqis here
could participate in the elections in their country.
It's done the same for Mexicans, Armenians, and others now living in America.
Despite requests from the NAACP and other organizations, officials have refused
to do the same for Americans displaced by Katrina, living right here
in Houston, Atlanta, Birmingham, and other cities.
The issue of voting rights for Katrina survivors in Louisiana has been heated.
A month ago, Black members of the state assembly walked out after other members
defeated satellite voting within the state.
Gov. Blanco originally opposed any form of satellite voting.
But after the walkout--and the activism of groups like KatrinaAction.org--she changed course.
Blanco clearly recognizes the issue
--here's what she said about satellite voting within Louisiana:
"These are unusual times that demand unique solutions," Blanco said.
"Without this bill, the election may lose some of its legitimacy.
Without this bill, tens of thousands of citizens could easily be
disenfranchised through no fault of their own," Blanco said. "
Without this bill, we deny a basic right to some of our citizens." <2>
But Governor Blanco has still failed to support satellite voting outside Louisiana.
Louisiana's Secretary of State Al Ater says the election doesn't violate anyone's rights
because people outside of Louisiana can still vote by absentee ballot.
But the reality is that it's much more complicated and difficult to vote by
absentee ballot than to vote in person, especially for someone who's been
displaced by Katrina.
To vote absentee, you'd have to apply for a ballot by mail, wait for the ballot to
come back, then send the ballot back again by mail. Many Katrina survivors have been
forced to move several times since the storm, which makes it impossible to guarantee
that election materials will get to them.
In addition, there are delays in mail service coming to and from New Orleans.<3>
To make matters worse, the State already sent information about absentee voting which
was inaccurate, incomplete, and confusing.<4>
Experts agree that without satellite voting, participation will be down.
To call the absentee voting process "fair and equal" is dishonest, and to give
displaced New Orleanians--most of whom are Black--no other option amounts to a massive
attack on their voting rights and their ability to participate in shaping the future
of their city. With so much at stake, it's essential to ensure that all New Orleanians
have equal access to voting rights, which means setting up satellite polling places
in other states.
Please join us in demanding satellite voting for displaced New Orleanians:
http://colorofchange.org/voting
Thank You and Peace,
-- James, Van, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
March 20th, 2006
References:
1. Evacuees can vote absentee or in La., The Times-Picayune, 2-25-06
http://colorofchange.org/ref/voting_tp1.html
2. Effort to let N.O. evacuees vote revived, The Advocate, 2-15-06
http://colorofchange.org/ref/voting_adv.html
3. Statement from US Postal Service regarding mail delays
http://colorofchange.org/ref/voting_ps.html
4. Voter rights groups criticize election mailings, The Times-Picayune, 3-10-06
http://colorofchange.org/ref/voting_tp2.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.kintera.org/site/apps/ka/ct/contactcustom.asp?c=feIJKQMEF&b=1498879&sid=74460457
No Unfair Elections in New Orleans
New Orleans municipal elections scheduled for this spring could set new records
for minority disenfranchisement, possibly surpassing the election debacles in
Florida 2000 and Ohio 2004. The team that rebuilds New Orleans may be elected
without input of the majority of the city's displaced residents—who are largely
African American—who cannot afford to return to vote.
Sign onto PFAW's statement calling on Louisiana officials to make these elections
as fair as possible by postponing the elections until they open satellite voting
centers in the cities where large numbers of New Orleanians are currently staying.
"If New Orleans' municipal elections are allowed to go forward as planned, hundreds
of thousands of the city's residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina — most of them
low-income and African American — could be disenfranchised.
We call for these elections to be postponed until they can be administered fairly.
This must include opening satellite polling places outside Louisiana in cities with
large numbers of Katrina evacuees to mitigate the impact of these flawed elections."
PLEASE SIGN and then pass it to someone else to sign!!
Meanwhile, the Election Protection Coalition -- led by PFAW Foundation, the NAACP,
and the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
-- is taking steps to protect the rights of New Orleans voters.
The NAACP has already opened 15 Voter Assistance Centers nationwide to tell displaced
New Orleanians about their options for voting and help them to cast ballots that will count,
and PFAWF has helped train volunteers at those centers.
The toll-free Election Protection Hotline (1-866-OUR-VOTE) is gearing up,
staffed with volunteer lawyers who help displaced New Orleans residents register to vote,
request absentee ballots, and determine how and where they can vote, as well as provide
other assistance.
People For activists must be on the front lines in this battle to protect voting rights.
Take the first step today by signing onto our statement.http://www.pfaw.org/go/NOUnfairElection~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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