With the November general election approaching, several Peoria organizations are coming together for a push to get more people involved in the process, particularly on the city's South Side.
“The initial thing is to get them registered, then educate them and then hopefully spur participation,” said the Rev. Marvin Hightower, president of NAACP Peoria, ahead of Saturday’s Voting Rights Day of Action on the lawn of the Peoria Public Library’s Lincoln Branch.
The rally, arranged by NAACP Peoria, the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria and the Peoria Alumnae Chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, marks the anniversary of passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Hightower said it’s critical for the community to come together to preserve voting rights.
“Because we always didn’t have it, for one,” he said. “I’m 61, so I’ve never lived in a country without voting rights, and so it’s important to go back to remember that we always didn’t have this right.”
Chris Kaergard, president of the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria, said while the organization promotes voter registration and election participation throughout the region, the South Side deserves particular attention.
“The zip code of 61605 has the lowest voter registration in the city of Peoria, and has the lowest voter turnout among registered voters,” said Kaergard. “So we are trying to reach people who are less likely to be registered and less likely to turn out.
“We want to make sure that residents in 61605 have their voice heard, and we want to connect this to people’s lives.”
The program runs from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with Peoria City Council member Andre Allen serving as host. Joining Hightower and Kaergard as the featured speakers are Marcellus Sommerville of the Peoria Friendship House, city council member Bernice Gordon-Young, and NAACP Peoria secretary Sherry Cannon.
Hightower said one of the bigger challenges is convincing people that their vote matters.
“It’s baffling, really, because I was listening to a speaker from 1979 saying the same thing,” said Hightower. “It seemed that after we got the Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Fair Housing Act, then affirmative action passed, that people forgot why they were voting, and the power of the vote.
“Voter apathy is huge, so we have to try to tie things to what’s going on their everyday lives. The street they’re driving on, if you want the street repaired, it’s a politician that has to bring a bill that brings the money into this community.”
Kaergard said the biggest keys to increasing participation is getting people registered to vote and educating them on the issues, the candidates and their positions.
“We need to make sure everybody is registered, and that we bring some local facts to what everybody has been seeing on the news about changes and the Supreme Court ruling on voting rights and everything else,” said Kaergard.
“Everybody is invested in the presidential race, and the turnout is always highest for the presidential race. I don’t want to pretend presidential races don’t matter; we know they do. But to Pastor Hightower’s point, the road you drive on, the school your kids go to, and how well they’re learning in that school — those issues turn on local races as often as they do national races.”
Hightower said he realizes the frequency of elections may lead to voter fatigue, but participation in the election process is imperative to make sure voting rights aren’t diminished.
“The central message is this: voting is not just a right or a privilege, it’s a responsibility that we have as citizens of this country. That’s the theme,” he said. “It’s our responsibility to make sure that we participate in the system that we have.
“I used to say the upcoming election was the most important election. No, all elections are the most important election.”
