Let's Vote

"In 1932 in the midst of the Great Depression, Franklin Delano Roosevelt won the presidency with the help of key African American defectors from the Republican Party. At the time, most African Americans lived in poverty in the South, denied citizenship rights and terrorized by white violence. But Roosevelt's victory created the opportunity for a group of African American intellectuals and activists to join his administration as racial affairs experts....

As the voting public continues to diversify across the United States, political candidates, and particularly white candidates, increasingly recognize the importance of making appeals to voters who do not look like themselves. As history has shown, this has been accomplished with varying degrees of success. During the 2016 election, for example, both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders campaigned vociferously among Latino voters in Nevada's early primary,...

In a series of landmark decisions in the 1960s, the Supreme Court established the principle of one person, one vote. In this documentary, Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and Stephe nBreyer and other experts discuss the political environment that generated the decisions in Baker v. Carr and Reynolds v. Sims and the Court's application of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in deciding reapportionment cases.

In today's modern world every political regime, even the most authoritarian or repressive, describes itself as democracy or a Democratic People's Republic. The concept of rule by the people, on behalf of the people, has come to be accepted as the norm, and very few would overtly espouse the cause of dictatorship, absolute monarchy or oligarchy as the most desirable political system upon which to base the government of any country. It is also generally...

From hunger strikes to massive parades, the American women's suffrage movement grabbed the attention of citizens and politicians around the United States. Posters, lapel buttons, and even luncheonette plates carried the iconic phrase, "Votes for Women." Over time this phrase became not only a slogan, but a rallying cry for the movement. Today, museums, libraries, universities, and historic sites across the country care for the objects and places that...

Michael Waldman takes a succinct and comprehensive look at a crucial American struggle: the drive to define and defend government based on "the consent of the governed." From the beginning, and at every step along the way, as Americans sought to right to vote, others have fought to stop them. This is the first book to trace the full story from the founders' debates to today's challenges: a wave of restrictive voting laws, partisan gerrymanders, the...

This book is for you if you ever... Wanted to change a law. Thought a law was unfair or unjust. Felt confused by bureaucracy. Thibault provides a better understanding of policy change and political persuasion (also known as lobbying). Once you understand the power of lobbying, you will be able to improve your community, influence leaders, and impact the world. How To Change A Law offers insight, actionable tools, and strategies that will lead you...

"A radical spirit of change has overtaken American politics, making once-unthinkable reforms-like abolishing the Electoral College-seem possible. Two of the last five elections were won by candidates who lost the popular vote, calling the integrity of the entire electoral system into question. Political passions are already high, and they will reach a boiling point as we enter the 2020 race. The message from the American people is clear: we need major...

A college student, a schoolteacher and a fellow of the National Science Foundation were all three ruled illiterate by the local circuit clerk and ineligible to vote. Filmed in 1962, this program reveals the double standards and the dangers faced by African-Americans registering to vote in Mississippi. Interviews with local officials, segregationists, lawyers, clergy and citizens on both sides of the color line expose what amounted to a tacit conspiracy...