Reflections by Rami Muth

Vice President League of Women Voters Solano

 

During the months of January and February a dedicated group of individuals from our Voter Services Committee have registered over 300 students from Benicia, Vallejo, and Vacaville.  Other districts in Solano County will also be served.  Janice Adams and I met with all of the Superintendents in Solano County to share our goals for voter registration drives within Solano County this year.  We expressed our commitment to craft a plan that met the needs of each school within each district.  We recognize that a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer effective.  We have met that commitment by working in a variety of formats including in-class presentations, large group meetings in auditoriums and libraries, as well as tabling events held during lunch.  We provided a presentation, in Spanish and English, to 60 students in the Adult School and Citizenship class in Vallejo and are exploring a 'Train the Trainer model’ for some of our future registration events with the League taking on the training and support.   The format has varied but the goals have not.  We want to not only register all eligible voters but to inform them about the right, the privilege, and the responsibility they have (or will soon have) as citizens. 

 

We encourage students to understand the power they have as individuals and collectively as part of the largest demographic age group.  While this group is statistically the largest in number, voter turnout for this demographic is traditionally very low.  We ask students to reflect on why they think that is and what we can do to address this challenge. Registering to vote is the first step in this critically important process.  Providing resources to gather unbiased information is of equal importance.   We believe that these voter registration drives help create a pathway to lifelong involvement as active citizens in our society. 

 

A very positive aspect of this work has been our collaboration with other like-minded groups.  Several members of the NAACP and the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority joined us in Vallejo.  The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority whose members include Kamala Harris, Coretta Scott King, and Rosa Parks.  These partnerships enrich our presentations and extend our outreach.

 

The League of Women Voters remains committed to living the words of anthropologist Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world.  Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Won’t you join us in this important work?  Please contact Craig Paterson if you would like to participate in the upcoming voter registration drives at craig_paterson [at] yahoo.com.