Deaf Voter Registration Drive Aims to Register 10,000 Deaf Voters by November 2004

From: Deaf Vote Now! - Feb 3, 2004

DEAF VOTE NOW! Project

PRESS RELEASE February 3, 2004

Contact:
Kevin McLeod, National Coordinator
info@deafvotenow.org
1008 Bristol Lakes Road #109
Mount Dora, FL 32757

Deaf Voter Registration Drive Aims to Register 10,000 Deaf Voters by November 2004

A bold new effort is underway to register 10,000 deaf voters by November 2004, in time to vote in the next Presidential election. The ambitious voter registration drive is being organized by the Deaf Vote Now! Project, a team of dedicated deaf activists intent on sparking a new spirit of political awareness in the deaf community.

The project's website at www.deafvotenow.org provides information and links to aid visitors who are ready to register to vote. Educational links lead to websites explaining the vote registration process, and sites that look at current elections, candidates, and issues. Also included are links to sites supporting verifiable voting, a movement to ensure that votes on newer electronic voting systems are recorded accurately.

A lively discussion forum at deafvotenow.org is growing with intelligent, provocative, and frequently amusing debate. Topics include the Democratic primaries, the war in Iraq, the boundries of church and state, the relationship between capitalism and democracy, and much more.

All of these features are also available to Sidekick users through a twin site at deafvotenow.org/mobile.

Visitors are encouraged to sign on to the Deaf Voter List, at http://www.deafvotenow.org/dvnlist.php.

The Deaf Voter List was created as a key tool for developing an effective lobbying group to promote deaf interests. According to Kevin McLeod, national coordinator at DVN, "The deaf community needs a current, accurate count of deaf voters across the nation so we can go to lawmakers and tell them what is important to our community. Registered deaf voters can be a powerful special interest group - if we register, use our vote, and partner with allied communities. We need to let lawmakers know that deaf voters in their districts are watching."

The Deaf Vote Now! Project has formed a strategic partnership with another activist site, deafocrats.org. Both sites are free, non-profit and non-partisan. Both focus on education, encouraging political awareness and activism. Additional partnerships with existing deaf organizations are being actively sought, with the aim of registering deaf voters for upcoming state primaries and the general election in November 2004.

All Deaf Vote Now! Project staff work as unpaid volunteers, and state-level coordinator positions remain available. To get involved, visit the deafvotenow.org's Contact Us page to get in touch with your regional coordinator, or send an e-mail to the national headquarters near Orlando, FL at info@deafvotenow.org.

Deaf Vote Now! Project - Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Deaf Vote Now! Project?

Deaf Vote Now!'s goal is to compile a Deaf Voter List of 10,000 registered deaf voters, and encourage as many of them to vote in the November 2004 elections as possible. To help meet this goal, we are organizing the largest voter registration drive in deaf history. The countdown to November 2004 has begun; we're in a hurry.

What will you do with the Deaf Voter List?

Two things:

First, offer information - for those who want it - to keep deaf voters informed of issues they may want to discuss with their representatives, and offer information for making informed choices. This will be done mainly with the Deaf Voter News e-mail newsletter. This is an opt-in newsletter, and the bottom of each newsletter will include simple, clear unsubscribe instructions.

Second, to help remind voters of upcoming elections in their area, point them to resources that will aid in locating the correct place to vote, and encourage them to GET OUT AND VOTE!

Will my contact information remain confidential?

Yes. Here's our Privacy Policy - it's short, sweet and to the point:

Out of basic respect for deaf voters, Deaf Vote Now! makes the following commitment to our visitors:

Any identifying and/or contact information you provide to Deaf Vote Now! will remain confidential. Deaf Vote Now! will NOT sell, lease, loan, share or give away any such information we obtain.

This policy is permanent, and is not subject to change. Your personal information will not be used for commercial purposes. Requests for access to our collected contact information will be ignored.

We understand the value of privacy and will not violate yours. Period.

Why should I bother to vote?

Would you get in a cab and tell the driver to take you anywhere he wants, then go to sleep? Of course not. You'd be taken for a very expensive ride.

That's exactly what happens when you don't vote. You're being taken for a ride. If you want a say in how your tax dollars are spent - vote! Want better deaf schools, or keep existing schools from being closed? Vote! Want more media to be close-captioned? Do you want your captioning to be censored? Vote! Want better relay service? Vote! Want responsive 911 services? Vote!

Wake up, take the steering wheel, and VOTE!

Who is involved in Deaf Vote Now!?

One small all-volunteer band of crazy people, in alliance with a broad spectrum of deaf organizations, institutions, businesses and clubs. We're working together because we all understand the importance of active involvement to maintain a healthy democracy. See the Contact Us page for the names of the main people involved; they're your regional and state coordinators.

How is Deaf Vote Now! funded?

Out of our own pockets. Every regional and state coordinator puts their money into making DVN a success. They're truly committed - or should be committed, it's a close call. :)

Is Deaf Vote Now! Republican or Democratic?

Neither. DVN is a non-partisan site. We exist to get deaf voters registered and encourage them to vote.

Where is Deaf Vote Now! based?

DVN is managed and directed almost entirely online - our network of coordinators is scattered all over the U.S., just as the Deaf community is. The website in managed from headquarters just north of Orlando, FL.

How will Deaf Vote Now! meet its goal?

Regional and state coordinators work with existing deaf organizations and events, sending volunteers to meetings, expos, conventions, schools - any place or event when deaf people get together. Volunteers will offer information on elections, issues, and offer opportunities to register to vote.

Are you trying to elect a Deaf president to the White House?

No - not yet, anyway :) We're working to encourage deaf people to vote in their local primaries and the general election in November 2004.

What will you do after 2004?

Continue to build political awareness in the deaf community through a variety of educational projects.