This week, MainStream is hosting, in collaboration with Indivisible KC, a forum on voter suppression. We will have tremendous guests, including from the ACLU, Leave Crosscheck, Loud Light, and the Kansas House of Representatives, who will discuss the issues surrounding voting rights and voter suppression.
Let's not mince words. The right to vote is enshrined in the United States Constitution, but many Americans have had to fight to achieve or protect that right. Today, that fight continues. The Kansas Legislature passed the SAFE Act in 2011, spurred by Secretary of State Kris Kobach's crusade to curb voter fraud. This law enshrined the Voter ID requirements that have served to disenfranchise ten of thousands of voters in Kansas. Since then, despite the unprecedented prosecutorial powers granted him, he has been unable to find but a handful of cases to bolster his arguments. The courts have prevented Kobach from requiring IDs for Federal elections, and even President Trump has cancelled Kobach's national committee examining voter fraud.
Coupled with systems like Kobach's Crosscheck and practices like the partisan gerrymandering of voting districts, voter suppression is an important issue at a time when confidence in government stands at a low point. With critical elections in 2018, protecting the right of every citizen to vote should be at the forefront of our activism.
Here's what you can do
Contact your representatives about the SAFE act and Crosscheck. Let them know that these, and other issues, are critical to our Democracy. Please use the ACLU's site to send your messages directly to those who represent you.
Go to the ACLU Lobby Day in Topeka tomorrow, January 23, 2018. There will be opportunities to learn about the issues and to meet with your Representatives to talk about voting rights.
Attend our forum, "Voters Denied: Pulling Back the Curtain" on Thursday evening in Olathe. Our stellar panel will break down the issues and give you concrete ideas for how to resist voter suppression efforts.
Stay informed
MainStream fully supports efforts to repeal the SAFE Act's voter ID requirement. It has been shown to do nothing to prevent voter fraud, certainly in the cases prosecuted by Secretary of State Kobach. Instead, it has been shown to disenfranchise honest voters, among them the elderly, women, and the poor. We will keep track of efforts in the Kansas Legislature to protect voting rights, and bring them to your attention.
But don't forget, it takes your action to make a difference. Your activism, your conversations, your calls and letters, and eventually, your vote.
It starts here.
Do more than vote.
