Southern Poverty Law Center announces new voter engagement campaign
The Southern Poverty Law Center on Wednesday announced a new bilingual voter engagement campaign called The South's Got Now with a goal of getting more young people to participate in the democratic process.
“Throughout our history, Black and brown young people have fought for the right to vote — knowing that it’s the doorway to freedom," said Margaret Huang, president and CEO of the Southern Poverty Law Center and SPLC Action Fund. "Today, some lawmakers are doing everything they can to discourage young people and make them believe they don’t have a voice.
"As these efforts escalate, and as a new majority emerges among young people in the South, we must reclaim and build upon the collective voting power of communities of color. Our votes have the power to change history — and young southerners of color are poised to lead that change.”
The SPLC works to advance racial justice, restore voting rights, abolish white supremacy in the South and beyond, and more. They do so by educating and mobilizing voters of all ages.
They commissioned research that found Black, Latino, Asian American, Pacific Islander and Indigenous young people aged 18-40 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi frequently feel underrepresented in their government. This has made them feel disengaged from voting.
“As an HBCU student in the Deep South, I recognize the legacy of generations of freedom fighters who have sacrificed so much to protect our right to vote," said Jessica Harris, a senior at Miles College in Alabama. "Now, it’s time for our generation to defend this sacred right — against all efforts to deny it — and to shape the direction of our country. The South’s got something to say, and we’re going to show it by using our voice and our vote."
The Alabama portion of the campaign begins May 24.
Victor Hagan is the Alabama Election Reporting Fellow for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at vhagan@gannett.com or on X @TheVictorHagan. To support his work, subscribe to the Advertiser.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: SPLC launches voter engagement campaign
