League of Women Voters ^®
of South Hampton Roads

Han Jones (they/them) has been working in political campaigns in Virginia and across the country for the last six years, with the goal of electing progressive leaders who will serve as reproductive rights champions. Han earned their BA and MA from Brown University studying Gender and Sexuality, Public Policy and American Institutions, and Behavioral and Social Science Interventions. They are proud to be an Organizer at heart, having gotten their start in politics as an Organizer as part of the 2016 and 2017 elections in Virginia. Han has also managed campaigns and political programs in Virginia and beyond. When Han is not engaging in political work, they enjoy traveling, cooking, and spending time with their partner and dog, Ella.
Please RSVP to SHRLeague [at] gmail.com for zoom link.

Guest speaker: Dr. Veleka Gatling,
Director for Diversity Initiatives, Institutional Equity & Diversity

Dr. Veleka S. Gatling serves as the Director of Diversity Initiatives and Assistant Professor at Old Dominion University. She teaches graduate courses related to professional learning, instructional supervision, and school-community relations in the Ed. Leadership Program. She provides opportunities for educators and community members to achieve excellence in their fields of expertise while promoting visible equity.

Our annual Program Meeting this Saturday, January 15, will discuss what feedback to give LWVUS on the national League positions in Impact On Issues. We will also look at our own five South Hampton Roads Positions. Dr. Gatling will provide a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion framework for our review of League positions.

What we have to consider is:

Are we using the position to advocate and is it working for us?
Does the position need to be updated through a 2-year Study?
Is the position no longer needed?
The LWV-US and LWV-SHR positions will be reviewed and recommendations submitted to keep, delete, or modify existing positions, or to recommend a study to consider a new position.

The positions to be considered are:

LOCAL- Regional Cooperation and Gun Law Enforcement have not been reviewed recently.
NATIONAL- Positions are grouped into Social Policy; Natural Resources; International Relations; Representative Government.
You can find the LWVUS Positions at: https://www.lwv.org/sites/default/files/2020-12/LWV-impact-2020.pdf

LWVSHR Positions at:

https://my.lwv.org/virginia/south-hamptonroads/positions

As you look at the Positions, remember the new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policy and see if using a DEI lens changes what you think of the Position. Remember, without a Position arrived at through a Study, the League does not advocate. But a Study is for the long term, not a way to deal with hot topics. Thus we wouldn’t study COVID vaccination issues, but we might want to study vaccination as a public health measure. The collective LWVSHR response will be entered on this form http://s.alchemer.com/s3/2021-Program-Planning-Survey

To get the Zoom link for Saturday, email SHRLeague [at] gmail.com with Positions as the subject. If you are planning to come with a proposal for a Study, please put that in your email and there will be a slide waiting for you.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRE-SESSION -- Wed, Dec. 1, 9 am – 1 pm Hosted by LWV-VA
Key issues for 2022 – explained by leaders of Virginia government agencies and citizen groups

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lwv-virginia-pre-session-tickets-1721145582

Dominique Johnson, Research Associate, Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy, will join us at our regular third Saturday meeting on Zoom, Oct. 16, 2021 at 10am. This discussion is open to the public.
To receive the link for this free program, email SHRLeague [at] gmail.com with SOR1 as the subject.