By Susan Bennett and Marcia Tugendhat,
UUCF’s UU the Vote co-chairs.
The stakes couldn’t be higher in the 2020 elections.
That’s what we thought this past winter when we began to plan how UUCF could be involved with the UU the Vote campaign. Then the pandemic hit and the stakes got even higher for our planet and those on the margins. Directly or indirectly, climate change, LGBTQIA+ rights, immigration, racial justice and other issues will be on the ballot in 2020.
When the shelter-in-place order came, our committee adjusted our plans to make the biggest impact we could from our homes. Luckily, we had laid the groundwork with Vote Forward, an organization whose mission is to empower grassroots volunteers to help register voters from under-represented demographics and encourage them to vote.
How You Can Take Action
Through Vote Forward you can write letters from home to voters in swing states. Vote Forward gives you the addresses and the script. It’s a proven strategy that gets more people to the polls.
To make it really easy, UUCF’s UU the Vote Organizing Team is holding an online letter-writing party next Sat., May 2, at 4 p.m. to get you started. Sign up here to receive all the materials you’ll need. When you personalize your letters, you will be asked to write why you vote in every election. This letter-writing event has a cap of 100 users/devices, so please RSVP by Apr. 29.
We We Vote
In preparation for this event, our team thought about our own answers to why we vote. Here are a few of our thoughts:
- I vote because I am the grandmother of a young man who is black, quirky and extremely neurodiverse. Worries about gun violence and racial injustices fill my waking and sleeping hours. Economic equality becomes even more important for a young person with learning differences. Passing a federal living wage is a real and personal concern!
- I vote because of the urgency of changing policies to reverse the effects of climate change.
- I vote because I am “pro-life” in the true sense of the word. I want lives of abundance and fulfillment for the world’s children. I want women, men and children to be able to make choices and have a voice.
- I vote because I hope for a sustainable planet for all species.
- I vote because I live in a constant low-level rage about the consolidation of resources and power in hands of the few that fuel the unraveling of policies meant to protect people and the planet.
- I vote because participating in our democracy is not just a UU principle. It is a moral imperative.
Why Do You Vote?
Would you join in sharing why you vote in order to encourage under-represented voters in the swing state of North Carolina to participate in our democracy by voting in November?
As progressive people of faith we are called to seize the opportunity the current electoral cycle offers us to fight for our values, counter voter suppression, expand democracy and engage in spiritually grounded, values-based issues conversations with other voters in our own communities.
We look forward to seeing you online on May 2 for the online letter-writing party.
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