The Marblehead League of Women Voters Racial Justice Group formed in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd. The LWV of Massachusetts issued a statement, as did LWVUS , and worked on police reform legislation advocacy. Both the LWV of Marblehead and the LWV of Massachusetts were signatories to a Resolution approved at National Convention about the Floyd killing and steps needed (link). (Note: State and local Leagues work together and with the US League, at different levels of government).
The LWV of Marblehead, through the Massachusetts LWV had become aware of the racism in the origins of the women’s suffrage movement as we looked into its history . Our 2020 celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Suffrage and the League, was tempered by that knowledge. A nascent group of Marblehead League members, soon to become our Racial Justice group, produced a program “Overlooked Too Long: Women of Color and the Struggle for Suffrage” that profiled women of color and suffrage. We began to meet to look at racism in our own community, including an incident regarding antisemitism.
The Racial Justice group meets about once a month. If you are interested in learning more, please email LWVMarblehead [at] gmail.com.
