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I Voted

I was diagnosed with lung disease last year. Since March I rarely venture out. Not worth the risk of becoming ill or dying.

Rather than voting in person, I requested a ballot.

Received the CA General Election Information Guide.

Voted

Read through the pros and cons for the 12 Props. Marked my decision in the Information Guide.

I visited Voter’s Edge CA to read candidate statements running for local and state office, and information on the Measure to increase sales tax in SLO.

My requested ballot arrived. I sat at my desk and safely voted.

How do you return the ballot? It could have been mailed in the official postage-paid envelope. There are more than a dozen VBM Ballot Drop Boxes located throughout SLO county. My ballot was deposited in the VBM Drop Box at the SLO Clerk-Recorder Office.

In a few days, I plan to use tracking to make sure my ballot was not rejected for any reason.

Voted

Voting has always been easy in SLO, CA. When I voted in person, I rarely waited more than 10 minutes before receiving a ballot. It is outrageous that people in other states in our country must wait in line for hours to cast their votes.

Voting should be safe and easy for every person in every state especially during this election when there is a pandemic.


Proclaim Liberty Throughout All The Land

Liberty Bell Postage Stamp

Liberty Bell–National Parks Service

The State House bell became a herald of liberty in the 19th century. “Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof,” the bell’s inscription, provided a rallying cry for abolitionists wishing to end slavery.

13th Amendment to the United States Constitution, adopted in 1865, abolished slavery throughout the United States and ended involuntary servitude except as a punishment for conviction of a crime.

Thirteenth, Ava DuVernay documentary

Equal Justice Initiative

Just Mercy


Freedom to Write–A Root of Democracy

Postage Stamp

JOURNALISTS ALLEGEDLY ‘Tracked’ And ‘Interrogated’ By DHS While Reporting On Border Sue Trump Administration ‘To Defend Free Speech’

The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, asserts that on “multiple separate occasions,” U.S. government officials demanded that the journalists participate in a “secondary screening” at the border and requested that they disclose information about their sources.

US Constitution Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Sources
Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law
Newsweek


Freedom to Speak Out–A Root of Democracy

Speak Out Postage Stamp

1977

Constitution of United States of America

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting
the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the
right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.

US Constitution, The White House

The U.S. National Archives


To Cast a Free Ballot–A Root of Democracy

Democrary_Ballot_Stamp

1977

Voting Rights Act: Major Dates In History (ACLU)


2019 Methods Preventing Voting
gerrymandering
voter purge
voter ID laws
voter registration laws
policies around early voting
closing polling places
voting rights for past felons

Is America a democracy? If so, why does it deny millions the vote? (The Guardian)

Voter suppression as a tactic – from strict ID laws to closing polling places to purging voter rolls – is deliberately making it hard for minority communities in America to exercise their democratic right.

Stacey Abrams is Fighting Voter Suppression (The Guardian)

At least 17 million voters were purged nationwide between 2016 and 2018, according to a recent study by the Brennan Center for Justice.

Which US states make it hardest to vote? (The Guardian)

Georgia has an “exact match” law, which requires that a voter’s registration form matches records kept by state officials. Residents can register online or through paper forms.Eric Holder Rages Against ‘Un-American’ Voter ID Laws (The Observer)

Democrats Vow Court Fight to Block New N.C. Congressional Map
(Politico)

Fighting Voter Suppression (The ACLU)

Stacey Abrams–leading a nationwide campaign against voter suppression (The Guardian)

Voter Suppression Reportedly on Rise in States Where Increasing Numbers of Democratic-Leaning Students Head to the Polls (The Root)

Long Island Divided

In one of the most concentrated investigations of discrimination by real estate agents in the half century since enactment of America’s landmark fair housing law, Newsday found evidence of widespread separate and unequal treatment of minority potential homebuyers and minority communities on Long Island.



Sources
ACLU
The Guardian
Politico
The Root
Newsday