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RECENT ARTICLES ABOUT NONCITIZEN VOTING RIGHTS
2007 Addressing throngs
at the West Indian-American Day parade yesterday in Brooklyn, Lt. Gov. David
Paterson sparked interest in whether he seeks a shift in the state's
political direction when he noted that noncitizen permanent residents used
to be able to vote in the United States. Legislation that would have given legal immigrants who are not citizens the right to vote in Boston municipal elections was rejected by yesterday by the City Council. For Elena Letona, director of the Latin American immigrant organization Centro Presente, the 7-6 vote was not a surprise. In fact, it was closer than she expected. "One of the reasons
why we were advocating [the legislation] is because most people don't
understand how long it takes to become a naturalized citizen," said Letona,
adding it is somewhere between 15 to 20 years before an immigrant can apply
for citizenship. "At the same time, they are people who are working, paying
taxes - yet they cannot have a voice in local government."...
READ MORE
Boston Globe
City Hall News New York City politicians could soon have a new voting bloc to court— the legal, non-citizen immigrant. Following through on an idea that has floated around the City Council since 2005, the Voting Rights Restoration Act would enable non- And with more than 1 million adult people who would get the right to vote, and countless more naturalized citizens who still empathize with the immigrant community, winning these affections would be in the interest of any enterprising politician—as lead sponsor Council Member Charles Barron (D-Brooklyn) seems well aware. [LINK TO FULL ARTICLE UNAVAILABLE]
CNW Group March 21, 2007 "City forum calls for voting rights for residents" TORONTO, March 21 /CNW/ - In recognition of the International Day for the Elimination of Racism and Discrimination, the City of Toronto today hosted a panel discussion attended by over 150 people at City Hall. "A City where Everyone Counts - Voting Rights and Civic Participation" explored the extension of the vote to all residents as a means of strengthening Toronto's civic engagement... READ MORE
The demonstrated noncitizen election organized by the Vermont Immigrant Voting Alliance on Town Meeting Day has sparked a discussion within the Burlington community. Should committed, legal permanent residents who are noncitizens be granted the privilege to participate in local democracy? Opposition seems to rest primarily on ideological grounds. Voting, it is claimed, is the essential privilege of citizenship, with no distinction between local or federal elections. Many Americans and immigrants, though, argue for noncitizen voting rights in local elections based on concrete, practical reasons and fairness. The Boston
Globe
Time Magazine April 12, 2007 Voting Block By Reynolds Holding Earlier this year, Takoma Park, Md., A suburb of Washington with a liberal tilt, held a special election to fill a vacant city-council seat. It was the town's latest contest under a 1992 law that allows any adult resident--including noncitizens--to vote for local offices. And since the election occurred at an odd time of year, officials took extra steps to get the word out. They mailed a notice, in Spanish and English, to every home. They sent a second notice to every registered voter. Yet when Election Day came, turnout was light, especially among noncitizens: not one of them cast a ballot. A single election may not be the fairest test. But as New York, Boston and several other cities consider allowing noncitizens to vote, the benefits of doing so are murky. Immigrant-rights advocates insist that giving newcomers a voice in local government integrates them quickly into their communities--and encourages them to become citizens. Opponents say that's backward: voting means little to an immigrant who hasn't earned citizenship. It's a divisive debate, and in a nation grown chilly toward immigrants, supporters of noncitizen voting have a tough case to make... READ MORE The Boston Globe April 12, 2007 Letting Noncitizens Vote - Descendants Debate By Matt Viser Szmulek Rozental sailed into New York Harbor April 10, 1948, a 16-year-old who had survived the horrors of a German concentration camp. Over the course of his new life in America, he would change his name to Steve Ross, learn English, and raise a family in Newton, imbuing his children with the gratitude he felt for a country that welcomed him when so much of the world had been hostile. "I grew up hearing every day of my life that I should be grateful to be an American," one of those children, Councilor Michael P. Ross of District 8, said yesterday... READ MORE
Citing the
need to give more of a voice to Boston's immigrant
The Boston Globe
Addressing throngs at the West Indian-American Day parade yesterday in
Brooklyn, Lt. Gov. David Paterson sparked interest in whether he seeks a
shift in the state's political direction when he noted that noncitizen
permanent residents used to be able to vote in the United States. _________________________ |