I learned about the power of voting as a child growing up in poverty during the civil rights era. I was too young to vote but I remember the tireless works of the civil rights and voting rights activists. Sometimes poor people may feel powerless and may not think their voice or vote matters. My parent’s didn’t feel this way. From a young age, I was told that elections have consequences. It was my civic responsibility to vote. A no vote is a vote for someone else. Voting gives us the power to decide on the quality of life we want for ourselves and future generations. We have the power to change the trajectory of our lives.
Voting is a right and a privilege for every citizen eighteen years old and older. My family and I had many discussions regarding the importance and history of voting. State and local laws were being used to segregate society. Segregationist Jim Crow Laws made it impossible for most black people to vote. Some of these methods also prevented poor white people from voting. Many black and poor people were illiterate and were not allowed to vote because they could not pass literacy tests. During this time, only people who owned property could vote. This excluded poor people. In Southern states, people had to pay a poll tax to vote. Poor people could not pay this tax and therefore were not able to vote.
I remember my parents and older siblings telling me about Tent City. This encampment was located in Fayette County, Tennessee, near my hometown of Memphis. In 1960, as a result of registering to vote, many black residents were evicted from their sharecropper homes. They moved into tents and some lived there for up to two years. As a form of retaliation, white grocers refused to sell groceries and other essentials to registered black voters.
During Freedom Summer of 1964 thousands of civil rights activities, many of them northern white students ,went to Mississippi and other Southern states to help black people register to vote. I remember that three college student activists were abducted and murdered. I remember learning about voting and civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer. She was threatened, jailed and beaten, but was successful in encouraging black people in Mississippi to register to vote.
In 1964 the U.S. Constitution was amended to make poll taxes illegal. In 1965 Congress passed the voting rights act making it illegal to pass literacy tests, property tests and pay poll taxes in order to vote. Congress amended the Act five times to expand its protections. I will not forget the warriors who were on the battlefield fighting for our constitutional right to vote. Because of their efforts, all people have the right to vote. Regardless of race or socioeconomic status, your voice and vote matters.
The civil rights workers fought, were beaten and killed for this right and I intended to exercise it. I was not going to stay home and allow other voters to make decisions for me. I learned not to rely solely on politicians to help me out of poverty but they play a pivotal role. They are responsible for creating or proposing laws that benefits the general public. This includes ethical issues such as resolving inequality and racism.
Voting is our fundamental right and the heartstrings of democracy. There are many reasons why people choose not to vote. One of the major reasons is voter apathy. This may be described as a lack of interest or caring among voters. Voter apathy results in low turnouts among eligible voters. As a person who lived in poverty, I feel there are many other reasons why people don’t vote. Some of these reasons are not related to voter apathy. In some cases, it is not that people choose not to vote, they can’t vote. Policing unfairly target minorities and people living in poverty. They may be unfairly convicted and incarcerated. As a result, they may lose their right to vote.
Some people may feel that the voting process is too complicated, they may struggle with illiteracy or low literacy, have no interest in politics, feel their vote won’t change the outcome of elections, have difficulty understanding the issues, distrust the government, prefer to vote in local elections only, and the list goes on. This may result in voter burnout and they choose not to vote at all.
According to some studies, people living in poverty and lower income people vote at a lower rate than higher income people. The complicated voting process may affect lower income people. Voter ID requirements may disproportionately disenfranchise voters. Some voters may not have bills in their names to show proof address, government issued photo ID’s or even birth certificates. Some people do not have the extra funds to pay for ID’s. Minimal cost for some people may not be minimal for struggling families. Some people live in households with other people and do not have bills in their names.
Some people are not able to go to a government office during working hours to obtain an ID. They may not have transportation, work multiple jobs, or can’t take time off from work. Some people with ID’s may not have transportation to the voting sites. People living in poverty and minorities are disproportionally arrested and convicted of a felony. Most states have laws that prevent people convicted of a felony from voting. Many poorer people want to vote but there are many barriers that may prevent them from voting.
Public policy is the process where governments develop programs and actions to deliver outcomes. Approval of a new policy requires the government to recognize that a problem needs solving, and must be approved by the elected branches of government. Many programs are developed based on societal needs. Social safety net programs are developed based on public policy.
All of us are concerned about issues and public policies. Decisions and votes made by others affect our daily life. Some concerns may be raising the minimum wage, pay equity, funding for local schools, state and federal government budget decisions, environmental concerns, retirement plans, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, health care and this list goes on. Voting is our chance to stand up for our concerns.
I grew up as a member of the minority and poor population and observed and lived through some of the barriers first hand. Some states participated in Gerrymandering. Districts were created to create an electoral advantage for a particular political party. There are various strategies and tactics used to influence voters. Historically, non -minorities and wealthier people may be less likely to support government spending for job programs, education or healthcare.
People living in poverty and minorities may be subjected to unjust laws or policies that prevent them from voting. It is our responsibility to vote for those who cannot. It is our responsibility to vote against unjust laws and policies that are not beneficial to all citizens of our great nation. We need to use our voice and our vote to remove these obstacles.