Sedona AZ (September 1, 2012) – The SedonaEye.com received the following Letter to the Editor from a Camp Verde, Arizona subscriber:
Dear Sedona Eye,
Celebrating Women’s Equality Day? Did anyone know about this?
Sunday, August 26, 2012 was the 92nd anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which gave women the right to vote. Now, almost a century later, our voting rights are under attack across this country.
Since 2011, 41 states have introduced at least 180 voter restriction bills including 34 with voter photo identification provisions. Now you may ask, “What’s so terrible about requiring a photo ID?” Well it’s not so easy to obtain a state or government issued ID.
People who don’t have access to a car, the elderly, minorities, youth, may live ten miles or more from an office that may be open only two or three days a week with limited hours.
According to a study done by the Brennan Center for Justice an NYU School of Law, 11% of Americans lack a govt. issued ID.
7% of US citizens (representing 13 million people) do not have ready access to their citizenship documents. Getting them, and/or a birth certificate can be expensive and issuing offices too far away as mentioned above. Many women change their surname when they marry.
According to the Brennan survey, of all voting age women even with ready access to their US birth certificates, only 48 percent have their current legal name on it. And only 66% of voting age women with such access to proof of citizenship have a document with their current legal name. That means as many as 32 million voting-age women may have no document available that confirms both their citizenship and their current name.
Other notorious restrictions include eliminating same day voter registration and reducing open polling hours. As many as five million people are destined to be unable to vote according to those restrictions.
Just recently Ohio tried to eliminate increased hours for polling places in Democratic counties, while allowing those in Republican districts to stay open.
These tricks disproportionately impact young people,the elderly, low income individuals and especially people of color, and within those parameters women are the ones most harshly affected. Does it surprise you that the people in those categories are most likely to vote Democratic? Voila! the real reason for those new laws: voter suppression. Of course this is all done with the excuse of preventing voter fraud.
Notwithstanding, a study found that between 2002 and 2005 the Federal Government obtained only 26 convictions for voter fraud (false ID) in 594 million votes.
In a nation that prides itself on holding free and fair elections, it is disturbing the we have to fight for voting rights all over again.
This in addition to the ongoing attacks on women’s economic security (Paycheck Fairness Act not being passed in the House of Reps) and reproductive rights (immeasurable bills to keep women from having access to birth control and healthcare). It is a critical time for women to pay attention to those candidates that will work for them or against them in the November election.
Lee Cali Cottonwood AZ 86326
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At issue here is the Democratic party supports women and people of color and the Republican party denigrates women and people of color. Even if the case is made that Democrats have not done enough for the poor or may need to address issues of gender and color, why would anyone vote Republican?
What a bunch of bunk. You have to show an ID for driving, signing checks, etc. Republicans have nothing to do with it. Democrats just want the masses to be able to vote without proving citizenship. Get a clue. Why would anyone vote Dem.
Really Joshua. How about the fact that there have only been a handful (like a total of 10) of bogus votes in the past Presidential election? You think that justifies robbing citizens of their votes and spending all kinds of money?
My father didn’t vote in one major election because of Texas’ poll tax, yet another ploy to keep minorities from voting, even though my father was a hard-working white man who had very limited discretionary funds in his budget. The assault against voters by Republican legislatures is not just tricky and dirty, it’s downright unpatriotic and anti-democracy, a disgrace to American exceptionalism.
Guess people just think voting should be a free for all. Everything I do asks for identification so guess if you don’t have a job or work you probably don’t have the ambition to get one. Am tired of hearing about the poor Americans having such hardships, Americans today don’t even know what hardships are they just like to complain about everything. Baer as far as only a handful of bogus votes give me a break, so you think in the whole US only 10. I have some ocean front property in Arizona for sale for you.
Yuma if your father was a hard working white man how did you take that fact to minorities? I know in Texas the only reason Johnson won as a senator was because of all the votes from the grave. The replubicans knew this but didn’t want to raise a stink. Guess you would rather have the Democratic way of voting which is anything goes as long as a Democrat wins. You also failed to mention the poll tax was a long time ago
Shannon – evidently you have not voted lately because if you had, you would have been asked for your identification and that would have been validated against a list the poll workers’ list of registered voters. That is the way it has been since I’ve been voting for 52 years.
I’m with Joshua. What a load of bunk. How difficult is it for any legal voter to get ID? Not at all. Quit looking for excuses and get out and get your life together and get the required ID. The rules are the same for everyone.
Or, forget about voting and live allowing others to decide this county’s direction. The professional victims are getting a little old with their complaints about everything.
Baer, I have never failed to vote and have done so for over 50 years and have found nothing wrong with being asked for identification. If they don’t, I could claim to be anyone and vote several times.
who in 2012 has problem getting i.d.’s ?
Dear Military and Overseas Voters:
U.S. Virgin Islands military and overseas voters will have additional time and options to send in ballots for the November 6, 2012, General Election.
All military and overseas voters from the U.S. Virgin Islands that request a ballot by September 22, 2012, for the November 6, 2012, General Election will be sent an absentee ballot using an express delivery service and will be offered the option of receiving their ballot by email or fax.
The U.S. Virgin Islands will provide all military and overseas voters with the option of returning their ballot by email, fax, or express delivery service at no cost to the voter. Instructions on how to exercise these return options will be provided to voters by October 2, 2012.
If military and overseas voters have any questions or need assistance, they may contact the Supervisor of Elections by calling the St. Croix Office at (340) 773-1021 or the St. Thomas Office at (340) 774-3107 or via email at: electionsys@unitedstates.vi.
All members of the U.S. Uniformed Services, their family members, and citizens residing outside the U.S. who are residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands can submit a Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) to register and request their absentee ballot for this election by going to FVAP.gov or by following the instructions in the Voting Assistance Guide, also available at FVAP.gov.
For further information or need help with the absentee voting process please visit FVAP.gov for live chat assistance, call FVAP at 1-800-438-VOTE or DSN 425-1584 (CONUS)/312-425-1584 (OCONUS), or email vote@fvap.gov. Remember, you also can contact your unit or installation voting assistance officers. And don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DoDFVAP and follow @FVAP on Twitter.
Help spread the word — pass this on to spouses, voting-age dependents, other military voters, and overseas voters. Sign up for State-specific election information here.