The Tuesday Night Lane Lyceum on September 22 featured a viewing of the documentary Suppressed 2020: The Fight To Vote, which told the harrowing tale of all the votes that were not counted and all the voters unable to vote – primarily African-Americans – in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election.
The self-serving injustice and the violation of the most fundamental of democratic principles – one person, one vote – was breathtaking and infuriating.
The screening was followed up by a discussion of ways to encourage and support voters and the voting process, especially in states where that fundamental right is in jeopardy.
Inspiration from First Parish in Concord
Special thanks to Adrienne Betancourt of First Parish (UU) in Concord, who provided inspiration and resources for this engagement. Adrienne also encouraged First Parish Needham folks to get involved with First Parish in Concord and other local UU communities to work together.
Adrienne directed us to the UU the Vote at First Parish in Concord web page, which has tons of information.
Thanks also to Leslie Nelken, who spoke about Vote Forward, which provides names and addresses of swing voters to which personal letters can be written. The process has been shown to increase the odds that the recipient will vote.
And Alan Robins, who spoke about his experience with Vote Save America, which focuses especially on six critical swing states and provides phone or texting training and lists to reach out to uncommitted voters in one of those states.
Other resources from the evening discussion:
UU the Vote
Tonight (Sept 23) at 7:30 pm EDT UU the Vote presents Gather the Spirit, which is the last UU the Vote virtual mobilization before Election Day. Register for the event here Gather the Spirit.
If you want to be part of the UU the Vote collaboration activities with Concord and other Mass UU churches, contact Laura Wagner (lwagner@uumassaction.org), Director of UU Mass Action
Poll Workers
The Secretary of the Commonwealth is recruiting people to serve as poll workers. To find out more, and the towns where this is needed, click here: Be a Poll Worker.
Books
Linda Davis suggested the following books from Emory University professor Carol Anderson:
- One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy
- White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide