REP. FUDGE HOSTS VOTING RIGHTS PRESS CONFERENCE

WITH CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS

"It is a necessity that every American has the ability to vote.

Restrictive voting provisions gut our very systemof democracy."

 

PRESS CONFERENCE:

WEDNESDAY, JULY 13--10AM--HOUSE TRIANGLE

*VIDEO OF PRESS CONFERENCE OR SATELLITEINTERVIEW WITH REP. FUDGE WILL BE AVAILABLE

WASHINGTON, DC-- Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) will host the Stand Up for Voting Rights press conference on Wednesday, July 13, 2011 with Rev. Jesse Jackson, 12 civil rights organizations, and numerous members of Congress to draw attention to recent restrictive voting measures that will strip citizens of their constitutional right to vote.

• Most state legislatures have enacted, or have proposed, legislation that will suppress specific populations of voters.  Many of these bills have only one true purpose: The disenfranchisement of specific populations of eligible voters.
• Legislation passed in Ohio drastically discourages voting, specifically for African Americans, Latinos, seniors, and students, by reducing the time allotted for early voting and eliminating the requirement that poll workers direct voters to correct precincts. Strict voter ID provisions are still pending in the Ohio legislature.
• During 2011, thirty-four states introduced legislation that would require voters to show a photo ID to cast a ballot. Approximately thirteen states introduced bills to end Election Day and same-day voter registration. As many as nine states introduced bills to reduce early voting and four proposed draconian reductions in absentee voting opportunities. Two states, took steps backward by reversing prior executive actions that made it easier for citizens with past felony convictions to restore their voting rights.
  Congresswoman Fudge is preparing a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder urging the Department of Justice to investigate whether photo ID laws violate the Voting Rights Act.

What: Press Conference with Rep. Fudge

When: Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Time: 10-10:30AM
Location: Capitol Hill, House Triangle

Please notify Laura Allen if you plan to attend: laura.allen@mail.house.gov or 202-590-6496

Directions to the House Triangle: the triangle is located directly in front of the capitol building on the House side (left side of the capitol closest to Library of Congress).

 

The following organizations and leaders will be in attendance:

Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rainbow PUSH Coalition

Wade Henderson, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Tamika Mallory, National Action Network

Barbara Arnwine, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

Laura Murphy, American Civil Liberties Union

Hilary Shelton, NAACP

Rafael Collazo, National Council of La Raza/Democracia USA

Miles Rapoport, Demos

Nichole Austin-Hillery, Brennan Center for Justice

Jim Dickson, AAPD

Victor Sanchez, U.S. Students Association

Campus Progress, Center for American Progress