A hand-drawn documentation of the “Women Fight for the Vote at Seneca Falls” convention in 1848. Although this saw the birth of the eventual movement to give women the right to vote, it was not until 1920, more than 70 years later, before all women in the country could vote. The vote 16 efforts could see national enfranchisement of 16 year-olds in a shorter period of time, depending on how supporters collaborate. (Source courtesy of the United States Library of Congress)
More movement on the west coast front:
Since earlier this year, I have been documenting mostly efforts going on on the American west coast, particularly in California, with references to other movements around the country. Obviously movements both locally & nationally are just as important too, given the importance of this particular movement. These are very interesting times, and connecting with partners locally, nationally & even internationally is important.
Last month, I meant to write a post that was more focused around Women’s History Month to highlight some of the efforts around the country that have been inspired by Women activists around lowering the voting age, but given the wonderful webinar yesterday evening hosted by the League of Women Voters of California, I think looking at the various efforts across the state in relation to the growing efforts around lowering the voting age to 16, this month’s post would continue the west coast focus.
At the webinar, we heard from the 5C(five colleges) League of Women Voters in the Claremont, CA region(near Los Angeles), The LWV Youth Council of San Francisco & the LWV California Youth Circle. Eventually, the slides will be up for most of the presentation, but these are just a general recap based on my notes. We’ll start with the 5C colleges.
Southern California has been really active in the advocacy efforts. Claremont High School had various representatives talk about voter registration drives, but also how their intersectional efforts with the Five Colleges in the Pomona region, has resulted in increased collaborative efforts to register new voters, particularly new college students who have to navigate the challenges of registering in near areas after leaving home to study. The groups in this area are also collaborating on efforts to connect with efforts in the Los Angeles area where Charter reform is currently occurring. In fact, some of those in attendance who’ve been actively involved in supporting the efforts in L.A. also spoke at the webinar, making that Vote16/League of Women Voters youth connection.
Next, the LWV Youth Council in San Francisco spoke out about how the rich history of the Bay Area continues to influence the work there. When you have a former Speaker of the House of the United States, a Vice-President who has repeatedly endorsed lowering the voting age to 16 in the last few years along with three nearby cities of Berkeley, Oakland & Albany that have lowered the voting age to 16 in the last decade(for school board in Berkeley & Oakland; citywide for Albany in 2024), it’s a tough act to follow. However the Youth Council was ready to rise to the occasion. They mirrored much of what was said by the 5C groups, and using the knowledge base generated by nearby cities that have already lowered the voting age to 16 in the last ten years, talked about strategies on how growing the movement using the tools, resources & skill sets that each of the youths possessed is helpful to empowering more young people at this time.
Finally, there was the more statewide Youth Circle coalition, who represented various parts of the state, not just one regional location. Some of the representatives from the earlier groups also had connections with the latter, encompassing group, so the statewide Youth Circle could echo much of what the second group mentioned about looking at cities where there has already been much success around lowering the voting age, but could also advise the different groups on questions they may have based on their vast geographic knowledge, which proved really useful for some members across various group because for some, this was only their first year as a LWV-affiliated group. If one group didn’t know an answer, one group either did or knew someone who would know.
The night concluded with additional connections among the different groups who were not already connected to each other, with interest in following up at a later time to do updates, continue supporting growing efforts as well as to look at places where newer efforts can spread. The webinar was helpful for all groups involved.
As the efforts continue to spread across the country, especially here in California, groups like the LWV, Vote16, PowerCA, and other regional, state, national and even international allies will be crucial to further propel democratic ideals in the 21st century. It is important now more than ever that young voices are heard, advocate and collaborate to empower not just young people, but also underrepresented communities and young women especially, as much as possible.
Jester Jersey
#16ToVoteAdvocacyProject 