Results tagged “dcvote”

If there's one thing that no member of Congress wants to be accused of, it's not supporting the troops. That very fear might be the only thing that finally gets the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives.

When D.C. voting rights advocacy organization DC Vote launched its "I Am DC" ad campaign earlier this summer, it placed posters featuring the faces and stories of 10 D.C. residents (including our own Martin Austermuhle) on Metrobuses and other visible spots around the city. But recently we noticed that images of the posters available for download on the DC Vote web site now number only nine. Who was on that 10th poster? It was embattled Jim Graham chief of staff Ted Loza.

When The Real World D.C. cast came to town a few months ago, we heard that they'd be doing what so many folks in the city do -- working for a number of non-profit and advocacy organizations. Noble as that is, we wouldn't have necessarily guessed it likely that they'd be working on any local causes. But it turns out, they did.

Five Years On: On Wednesday we gathered to celebrate DCist's fifth anniversary, which caused me to reflect on how in those five years I've written countless posts and gotten into innumerable arguments with some in the commentariat -- all over D.C. voting rights. In the last five years -- which, in the grand scheme of 200 years of injustice is nothing -- the voting rights movement has had hope and seen defeat, but never really achieved any of its goals. This isn't to criticize the selfless and noble work of those who advocate on behalf of the District's enfranchisement more than it is to say that, well, we're still unrepresented in Congress. Yet the fight continues, and with each passing day comes a new reminder of the ways big and small that our particular injustice is rubbed in. Maybe it will take another five years before the plight of the District's residents is remedied. Maybe it'll take 50. Who knows. But as the city comes alive again after the August break, another cycle of hoping, organizing and advocating begins anew. Let's just hope that by the time DCist turns 10 or 15, I'm not still writing about how it sucks not to have voting rights.

Jeez. For someone who prides himself on ranting about the District's lack of voting rights on a regular basis, I realized today that the last thing I had to say about the city's longstanding disenfranchisement was on June 10. On that day, we found out that Congress was laying to rest -- at least for the time being -- legislation that would grant the city a voting seat in the House. Since then, well, it's been radio silence from DCist HQ. (OK, so there was that one piece on June 24 about President Obama's license plate, but let's be honest -- that's not terribly substantial, now is it?)

It's been a little disconcerting to ride my usual Metrobus routes for the last few weeks. I'm always happy to see my friend and fellow DCist editor Martin Austermuhle, but having his steely eyes staring down at me non-stop has been somewhat startling on occasion. "Oh hey, Mart-- oh god, it's that friggin' poster again!" Maybe you're having the same problem. The Reliable Source picked up a little item about Martin's participation in DC Vote's latest ad campaign today, so I was reminded to mention it.

As we return from the Fourth of July weekend, many of us are still recovering from celebrating America's independence and a system of representative government that guarantees that each and every citizen can have a voice in the policies and decisions that affect their lives. But of course, no Independence Day is free from irony for District residents -- while one of the rallying cries of the movement for independence from Britain was a lack of representation (while being taxed, no less), the 600,000 or so of us in D.C. still live with that reality, some two centuries later. Somewhere, the Brits are smirking.

After legislation that would grant the District a voting seat in the House was shelved last week, we called on President Obama to lend a hand and expressed concern that the proposal may be dead for the year, if not dead for good. Regardless, the cause soldiers on. Below is a rundown of the latest voting rights news.

MORE 2:28 p.m.: D.C. Vote Executive Director Ilir Zherka just returned our call, and takes issue with our characterization that the D.C. House Voting Rights Act is "dead."

When Mayor Adrian Fenty opined last week that D.C. residents should be willing to accept having Congress gut the city's gun laws in exchange for a voting member in the House, many activists were peeved that the District's chief executive would make such comments in the midst of a lobbying push to secure amendment-free voting rights legislation.

WAMU says that he did not, opting instead to display special inauguration-themed plates on the presidential limousine, aka The Beast, during Tuesday's Inaugural Parade. As you can see in the above photo, the plates are blue, and display the numeral '1.'

We were reminded this morning that DC Vote's music video, which we showed you just a short part of when it was previewed at the Democratic National Convention, was released in its entirely two weeks ago. You can download both the video and the song, which was written by Joe L. Da Vessel and Melodic, directly from DC Vote's web site.

The battle between Congress and the District over the city's gun laws continues today.

         

Voting rights activists and members of the D.C. delegation to the Democratic National Convention held a small rally in front of the U.S. Mint in Denver this morning, but the Mint's location on the edge of downtown made for a not particularly visible event among the throng of other convention-related activities going on here.

DC Vote just sent around an email to all their supporters to remind them of their planned event outside the U.S. Mint in downtown Denver. The rally (protest? gathering?) is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. From the announcement:

We will host a peaceful rally outside the Denver Mint and pass out wooden coins to the public because the mint rejected the DC government's request to imprint the words "taxation without representation" on DC's quarters and because…

Continue reading "Rally at U.S. Mint to Go Ahead Without Permit"

Here's the music video that played right before Eleanor Holmes Norton was introduced at the DNC. The go-go style song, "Demand the Vote", was commissioned by DC Vote and written by D.C. musician Joe L. Da Vessel and the band Melodic. The video was directed by Warren Wesley at G-light Films.

D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton is set to open the second day of the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Unlike Monday, the D.C. delegation has shown up bright and early to watch Norton speak. Most of D.C.'s section of the Pepsi Center is full at just after 3 p.m. Mountain time.

    

Abraham Lincoln took a stroll along downtown Denver's 16th Street Mall today, encouraging passersby to sign a petition to support congressional representation for the District of Columbia.

      

The District of Columbia's delegates to the Democratic National Convention gathered early this morning at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Denver for a collegial breakfast before heading out to lobby other delegations to support voting rights for D.C.

Last night a handful of D.C. Democratic delegates came together with organizers and volunteers from DC Vote for a pre-Democratic National Convention party at the Bohemian Caverns Mahogany Room. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton rallied the troops with a few remarks, urging delegates and voting rights volunteers not to forget that the District's delegation is "very different from other delegations." District residents can't attend the DNC for fun and games, she said, because they need to be out in full force spreading the word to other delegates from around the country that they need to support voting rights for the District.

What with our marches and tea parties, we think the D.C. voting rights movement is plenty hip. But the folks at DC Vote are constantly looking to be just a little more risqué, and they're looking for help to do so. Want to be a fly girl (or boy) for voting rights?

DC Vote has teamed up with local group, D.A.A.S. Wuz Up Entertainment, to produce a music video that sheds some light on DC's denial of democracy. Please join DC Vote staff, local supporters and local musician, Joe L. Da Vessel, for the "Demand the Vote" music video shoot, this Saturday, August 2. Joe L. has created a go-go song exclusively for DC Vote. Now we're shooting a music video to accompany it, and we need your help!

Continue reading "Seeking Voting Rights Fly Girls (and Boys)"

August will soon be upon us, Congress is about to duck out of town and the only thing most people can talk about is presidential politics. But that's not stopping the District voting rights movement, which continues to push forward in its fight for full voting representation in Congress.

Sure, the D.C. voting rights movement has seen its fair share of defeats, but no one has thrown in the towel yet. And by the looks of it, no one will.

Around this time last year, we were ramping up for the Voting Rights March, an event that eventually brought thousands to the streets of the District to demand that Congress act on legislation granting the city a voting seat in the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, this year we won't be repeating.

...and it's not today's primaries.

We would like to take a moment to thank this week's advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because big cities are full of little adventures. Rogue Wave, playing the Black Cat on November 5th. World War Z, perfect as Halloween is coming up. Ambition Facing West, at the H Street Playhouse. Travelzoo, with its Top 20 list on travel deals. DC Vote, with an event on October 23rd (that's next Tuesday!). Busted Tees, where they're...

As is the custom around these parts, we would like to take a moment to thank this weeks' advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because big cities are full of little adventures. DC Vote, with an event on October 23rd. Look Me In the Eye, which is apparently an instant best seller. Ambition Facing West, starting today at the H Street Playhouse. Busted Tees, where they have hoodies! If you're interested in advertising on DCist...

We'd like to take a brief moment to thank this week's advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because there's shopping, dining, and entertainment destinations to be discovered. Look Me in the Eye, by Augusten Burroughs' older brother. DC Vote, which has its Champions of Democracy event on October 23rd. Busted Tees, where they have some shirts on sale for $9.99! The Heartbreak Kid, which has a special contest for DCist readers. You can win a...

After waiting all summer, and oh, nearly 30 years since the last time a D.C. voting rights bill made it to the Senate floor, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has scheduled the cloture vote on S. 1257, the DC House Voting Rights Act of 2007, for Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. But whether the bill has the 60 votes needed to avoid a filibuster is still unclear, so voting rights activists are asking supporters to rally...

As Sommer mentioned earlier this week, I was fortunate enough to have been invited to speak on a panel on D.C. voting rights at the YearlyKos Convention, a huge gathering of progressive activists and bloggers in Chicago. This morning I will be sitting alongside D.C. Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta, Danny Rose from DC Vote and Kesh Luddewhetty of DC for Democracy, all of whom will detail the current fight for voting rights, where it stands...