Rep. Veasey Introduces Resolution with Sen. Wyden to make September National Voting Rights Month

Sep 12, 2018
Press Release
Over 110 Members of Congress are co-sponsoring this bicameral Resolution.

Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Marc Veasey (D-TX), founder of the Voting Rights Caucus, and current co-chair, introduced a bicameral Resolution with Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) to designate September as “National Voting Rights Month”. The resolution will encourage voter registration in the month of September, and push Congress to restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

“By making September National Voting Rights Month, we are firing up Americans to defend their democracy,” said Congressman Veasey. “This Resolution will spark voter engagement, teach our children about our country’s history of voter suppression, and encourage the next generation to get registered, so they can have a voice in the direction of this country.

The Resolution would also put pressure on Congress to pass legislation to automatically register 18-year-olds to vote in Federal elections. Additionally, it will encourage public schools and universities to develop curriculum to educate students on voter suppression laws, and the importance of voter engagement.

The administration is fixated on making it harder for young people, seniors and people of color to vote,” said Senator Wyden. “When fewer Americans vote, big businesses and special interests win. This resolution brings much-needed awareness to the issue of voter suppression, and encourages Congress to take real action to combat these tactics and empower every American to take part in our democracy.”

This Resolution has been endorsed by 20 plus voting rights and civil rights organizations, civil justice groups, and voting rights activists, including Let America Vote and the NAACP.

"The right to vote is the cornerstone of American democracy, and we should be doing everything we can to protect and expand that right for eligible Americans," said Jason Kander, president of Let America Vote. "By designating a month to recognize the progress we've made and the work we have left to do, we draw vital attention to the ongoing struggle that began with the Civil Rights Movement."

"There are currently too many people trying to use partisan tricks to exclude and disenfranchise whole groups of people from exercising their inalienable right to have a voice in their government,” said Hilary O. Shelton, the Director of the NAACP Washington Bureau and the Senior Vice President for Policy and AdvocacyWe should be encouraging young Americans to get into the habit of voting and exercising their voice. The future, their future, is too important.” 

 

A copy of the legislation can be found here.


                                                                       

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Endorsements:

NAACP
Let America Vote
Jason Kander
Mayor Eric Garcetti
Secretary of State Steve Simon
Flippable
National Organization for Women
Human Rights Campaign
Transformative Justice Coalition
National Black Justice Coalition
Voting Rights Alliance
National Urban League
National Commission for Voter Justice
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Spread the Vote
Public Citizen
National Council of Jewish Women
We are the Change
Rainbow PUSH Coalition