...LWVMC Acts Locally and Globally
The members of the League of Women Voters of Metropolitan Columbus (LWVMC) are diverse and drawn from local communities. They work to promote and encourage voter registration. For example, to integrate one of the largest and thriving Somali populations in the US into the Democratic, the efforts include instructional voter registration training recordings in both Somali and Spanish. The training recording video aims to assist those who can communicate only in their native Cushtic language in getting ready to register to vote, obtaining the necessary information, or knowing where, when, and how to cast their ballot.
...And Statewide in OhioThrough Lobby Corps
Metropolitan Columbus League Members are kept informed by the LWVO Lobby Corps consisting of volunteers across the state who work to track and influence state-level policy in keeping with LWVUS priorities. Their dedication and hard work has allowed the League to be active and effective in improving the lives of Ohio communities for more than 100 years.
Lobby Corps zoom meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesdays at noon. State Leaders do a fantastic job of taking complex topics that are League priorities and breaking them down into coherent concise lessons. If you would like to join Lobby Corps meetings when it fits your schedule, here are the links to register. For the Second Tuesday calls, Meeting Registration - Zoom. For the Fourth Tuesday calls, Meeting Registration - Zoom.
...Benefitting From the National LWVUS Priorities
National Priorities are set after careful study of policies that will benefit local communities. At the September Lobby Corps Zoom meeting, we learned that The League of Women Voters of the United States named the National Popular Vote (NPV) as a priority in its 2024 National Convention! As far back as 1970, following a study, the LWVUS created a policy in favor of the National Popular Vote.
Advantages of the NPV to our Metro Columbus communities include: The candidate who loses the popular vote will not become president. There will be no spectator and battleground statesand candidates will be motivated to seek voter support in all 50 states and DC. Voter participation should increase because voters will know that their vote counts. Rural and minority voters will have equal voices with urban and majority voters. Finally, the votes of people in minority parties in a state will count.
The League of Women Voters of the United States believes that the direct-popular-vote method for electing the President and Vice-President is essential to representative government. The League of Women Voters believes, therefore, that the Electoral College should be abolished. We support the use of the National Popular Vote Compact as one acceptable way to achieve the goal of the direct popular vote for election of the president until the abolition of the Electoral College is accomplished. (From LWVCT 2013-14 Impact on Issues.)
The National Popular Vote Compact is a transitional measure to reach the eventual abolition of the electoral college. The Compact is an agreement among a group of states and the District of Columbia to award all their electoral votes to whichever candidate wins the overall popular vote (not just their state's popular vote.) The National Popular Vote Compact works within the electoral system outlined by the Constitution and every vote in every presidential election will be equal.
The National Popular Vote Compact will go into effect when adopted by states and capture over 270 electoral votes. Currently 61 more votes are needed, and seventeen states and DC have passed NPV bills. According to Legislature.ohio.gov, the status of the Ohio National Popular Vote bill is as follows. HB70 was introduced on 2-14-19 and referred to the Federalism Committee on 2-20-19 which had its first hearing on 3-19-19. To see the current status of the National Popular Vote bills in each state, go to Status of National Popular Vote Bill in Each State | National Popular Vote. To take action, go to Ohio | National Popular Vote.
LWVUS prioritizes ERA (The Equal Rights Amendment) and United Nations CEDAW ( Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women)
Did you know that the ERA (The Equal Rights Amendment) was first introduced in the U.S. Congress in 1923 has yet to be ratified as an amendment to the U.S. Constitution by the U.S. Congress? The League is pushing for Congress to officially recognize it as the 28th Amendment. CEDAW ensures data collection for transparency!
Read why this recognition is necessary!
When the ERA passed in 1972, the legislation included a seven-year deadline. Upon reaching the original deadline without achieving the requisite number of state ratifications, advocates for the ERA convinced Congress to extend the deadline until 1982. In January of 2020, Virginia became the 38th and final state needed to ratify the ERA. As the ERA has now met all requirements to be added to the US Constitution, There is a joint resolution (S.J. Res. 4/H.J. Res. 25) in Congress that affirms that the ERA is a valid part of the Constitution and that addresses the question of a ratification time limit. (Link leads to LWV take action page.). Passing the ERA will elevate the standards by which the courts scrutinize sex-based discrimination, protect against the rollback of rights, and pave the way for further legislative progress towards sex and gender equality. A majority of countries worldwide have the benefit of this guarantee in their constitutions. (Read more here)!
CEDAW (The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women) was adopted by the United Nations (UN) in 1979. CEDAW is the Women’s Bill of Rights that is one of the UN’s 9 core
human rights instruments. The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted in July, 2002 to recommend ratification of this Treaty for the Rights of Women but it has never come before the full Senate for a vote. The U.S. remains the only country in the Western Hemisphere and the only industrialized democracy that has not ratified this treaty.
“What gets measured, gets managed!â€
While the ERA is a legal tool used in a court of law, CEDAW collects data and uses that data on education, jobs, healthcare, wage parity, unpaid care work, etc. to call for and advocate for changes. The League has integrated support for the CEDAW in its national positions for Equality of Opportunity enabling local and state Leagues to endorse resolutions and ordinances for local implementation of the CEDAW data collection. This mandate is for data gathering, not specific policy: CEDAW requires gender-based data collection for transparency but how disparities are addressed afterward is up to the legislature. Read more here about how CEDAW connects to the UN Sustainable Goals: 3,5,8,10,16,17
RESOURCES
More on AfroAsiatic Languages: Our languages and dialects are the footsteps of a growing tree that spans the world and is present right here in Metropolitan Columbus for us to experience. Over 500 million people are native speakers of an Afroasiatic language, constituting the fourth-largest language family after Indo-European.
