[Marxism] Time to defend voting rights

[Russell Morse <russell.morse@xxxxxxxxx>]

The spate of attacks and slanders against ACORN's voter-registration efforts, 
plus the mounting Republican-instigated drive to "suppress" voter turnout and 
participation, and indeed the effort of Sarah Palin and others in and around 
the McCain campaign to encourage an incipient fascist or McCarthyite movement, 
all suggest to me at least that there is a basic question here of democratic 
rights - civil rights, voting rights - that transcends whatever one thinks of 
Obama's candidacy.  The Civil Rights movement fought for and largely conquered 
the right of African-Americans to vote and to have their votes counted.  That 
conquest is now under concerted attack in many areas of the country.  It seems 
to me it's time to mobilize and speak out in defense of voting rights, and in 
particular the right of African-Americans, Latinos, and poor people to 
participate in the electoral process, to vote, and to have those votes counted. 
 I see no reason this should not
 include working alongside Obama volunteers and organizers to register voters 
and on election day assure that new voters get to the polls without hindrance.

I'd be interested to know if any Marxmail participants are already involved in 
such efforts and what their experiences have been.  

References follow -

http://www.madison.com/tct/news/309718

http://www.alternet.org/democracy/103558/after_a_surge_in_registration,_a_surge_in_suppression/?page=entire

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2008/10/michelle_bachman_calls_for_media_investigation_of_anti_american_members_of_congress.php

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/54386.html

http://washingtonindependent.com/13548/breaking-obama-demands-special-prosecutor-investigate-gop-voter-fraud

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zack-exley/the-new-organizers-part-1_b_132782.html

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