Voter Rights Forum to Take Place in Fayetteville Protecting and Expanding Voter Rights
by Kathy Grear 10/26/2015Efforts to protect and expand voting rights in North Carolina continue to gain strength. A plan by Black elected officials and a coalition of Black publishers to convene a series of voting rights forums has taken shape. It is designed to help address the need to protect and expand Black voters access to the ballot. Our plan has been well received and the first forum is scheduled in Fayetteville on November 7th. It will be held at the Westover Recreation Center located at 267 Bonanza Dr. Fayetteville, NC 28303 from 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Our forum is free and open to the public.
The NC Caucus of Black School Board Members (NCCBSBM) and a coalition of Black publishers are co-sponsoring the Fayetteville forum. Participating Black publishers will continue to update their readers with agenda specifics and vision ideas as our planning continues. We plan to analyze the political landscape and identify areas that need attention or shoring up.
As previously noted, while holding the forums, publishers will engage in messaging and outreach in order to ensure that all who wish to get involved with the task of protecting and expanding our voting rights will know how to get involved. Educating, organizing and mobilizing Black voters are inherent in our efforts to succeed in protecting our voting rights. Because we’re planning multiple forums leading up to the November 2016 General Elections, our leaders and communities will be able to engage in ongoing dialogues to plan and evaluate community engagement strategies.
We believe that the way we address the issue of protecting the voting rights of Blacks will go a long ways with efforts to bring economic equity to Black communities. The challenges to protect voting rights are the same as those we face in creating economic equity. Both challenges require ongoing effort of interaction between all segments of our communities and the leadership of Black elected officials. We’ve found that fundamental to solving problems is the ability to accurately define them and to educate constituents. Because Black elected officials represent the reservoir of political and economic empowerment potential of our communities, it is essential that they describe our strategic goals and objectives in these arenas and lead efforts to achieve them.
It is important that our elected officials and their strategic allies and constituents be present at our forums. It is essential that they be a part of the strategy discussions that will be the basis of decisions that are made on community mobilization for the 2016 General Elections. One elected official that has helped to coordinate this project is Rep. Rodney Moore, D-Mecklenburg County. According, to Rep. Moore “one of the most important responsibilities of Black elected officials, if not the most important responsibility is to protect and expand Black voting rights.”
The Black publications that are presently supporting our efforts are The Fayetteville Press, County News, The Carolina Times, The Winston-Salem Chronicle, The Carolina Peacemaker and Greater Diversity News. Please subscribe to and look to these publications for ongoing coverage as this project continues to evolve. Please share your ideas on what we can do to improve the project and our coverage.
Peter Grear
Project Facilitator
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