Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. felt that voting was at the foundation of true democracy. He advocated for allowing diverse voices to shape our government. He encouraged Black citizens to always take the opportunity to vote; that is, to use their voices at the voting booth as a peaceful alternative to violence.
Then and now “VOTING is the voice of the people.” The current challenges are to encourage every eligible voter to vote, and to peacefully protest against changes that have made it increasingly more difficult for many citizens to be able to participate in voting.
Step 1: A Local Government S.T.A.R. Card
City Commissioners serve on a bipartisan committee that is made up of both Democrats and Republicans. The Commissioners job is to make sure elections are fair, secure, and located in polling places that are easy to access. Their goal is to have all eligible citizens register and vote. What ideas would you offer City Commissioners on how to encourage more people to register and to vote? Be prepared to share your ideas(s).
Step 2: Read The Walk by Winsome Bingham
To Think About:
1. As the story begins, the first woman to join the walk says that this walk “feels like it is 1972 all over again.” 1972 marked the first Presidential Election in which the age a citizen could vote for president was lowered from 21 to 18. Would you like to see that age lowered again, or raised, or stay the same? Be prepared to support your point of view.
2. As the story is near the end, Granny tells her granddaughter, “The walk wasn’t always this long. Some folks just keep making it longer.” Why do you think some people want the walk to the polling places to get longer? Do you think Granny’s method of picking up people on the way to the polls is a good way to make sure people vote? Why or why not?
3. What creative ideas do you have to encourage eligible voters to register and vote? Be prepared to share your ideas.
4. Granny tells her granddaughter that “school is always in session. What do you think Granny means? Who do you think learned something on the WALK?
5. Young people cannot vote for President until they are 18 years old. Granny says that voting is how grown-ups speak up. In what way(s) do you think you could practice speaking up and saying what is on your mind? If given the chance, what idea would you like to share, and to whom would you share the idea?
6. After Granny voted, she and her granddaughter got a sticker that said, “I Voted”. Why do you think the I VOTED sticker is important? In the space below, create your design for a sticker you think people should get after they vote?