Voter Turnout - The Key to True Political Representation
- By Malik Green
- Published 10/28/2009
- Political
- Unrated
Malik Green
I am a 52 year old African American male, born in Harlem; raised on the Lower East Side of New York City. As a child I loved to read. I was particularly interested in politics, my ethnicity and God. My inherent passion for my African ancestry was evident at a very young age. Actually, at the age of 5; which was the year 1962, I distinctly remember African Americans not wanting or liking to be “Black” or “African”. That was very confusing to me at the time. I; however, for no specific reason, was pleased with being “Black” or “African” even at the early age of 5. My inability to make sense of why my race had been treated the way they were treated led me to search for the answers as to: Why my people, African Americans, didn’t seem to appreciate their own heritage and ethnicity? This desire to know was the beginning of my quest to find the answers to these most profound questions. My biological father left before my first birthday. My first African American role models were Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X. These men epitomized what I always thought African American men can be; independent, strong, intelligent and fearless. Being African American, especially an African American male, growing up without a father, a real man makes life in America very difficult. I; unfortunately, had to learn many things the “hard way”. I dropped out of high school at age 17; and with no where to go, I joined the U.S. Army. After spending 5 years in the military I came back to New York in 1984 and was introduced to “crack cocaine”. After two hellish years of crack addiction I, by the grace of some force greater than myself, I was able to free soul from this menacing demon. I have been clean now for over 20 years. Over the last twenty plus years I have been on a personal mission to make sense of why African Americans are in the predicament we are in today. I extensively studied the political, economical and social aspects of America. I have discovered truths that bear light and understanding that is lacking today in the African American community. I have also spent a great deal of time on a spiritual quest as well. This is where I have achieved the greatest benefit reward. I have researched the history and concepts of all the major religions; Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism and well the occult sciences of spirituality. Through this research I have discovered some astonishing and verifiable truths; truths that are not widely disseminated to the masses. I do believe that as you read my book, this knowledge will manifest itself. We all have gifts that we come into the world with. My inherent gift is the gift of insight. As you read this book you will quickly see that it does have a lot to offer the African American people and America as a whole.
View all articles by Malik GreenVoter
Turnout
The
Key to True Political Representation
Voter
turnout can be explained as the percentage of registered or eligible voters who
cast a ballot for an election. In the
decades leading up to the 1960’s there was an increase in voter participation.
Since then, activity among voters has declined.
Many claim that the reasons for this trend have been due to situations
such as economic, demographic, cultural, technological and institutional
factors. In my opinion, the major reason
for the lack of voter turnout is voter’s lack of confidence in the political
process. How else can we make sense of
the New York City 2005 Mayoral election?
There are roughly 8.3 million people who live
in New York City. If you happen to be
one of the millions of residents who reside in the city, you have unquestionably
felt the effects of the Bloomberg Administration in one way or another during
the last eight years. In light of the
low voter turnout a fair question needs to be asked: Is Mayor Bloomberg’s stay at Gracie Mansion a
fair representation of what New Yorkers want?
Of the New York City residents, an estimated 50% (4 million) are registered
to vote. From that amount, only 32% (1.3 million) used their privilege to vote
in the last mayoral election. What
happened to the other 2.7 million eligible voters? What if the other 2.7 million exercised their
right to vote? Would that have changed
the political landscape? Maybe…maybe
not, but one can only imagine.
The
way the American government is structured, the voting process is the only
entity where the people can make their voices heard and their presence
felt. Your vote does not hold any less or more
influence than any other voter regardless of any economic or social differences
we may have. The one thing that is not
structured accordingly is a reliable mechanism for providing the people with
the facts that are needed in order for the voting population to make well-informed
decisions regarding the political issues at hand during any election.
The
African American community’s failure to be proactive and full participants in
state and local governmental elections is a major reason why African Americans
are disenfranchised politically and economically. State and local elected officials have direct impact
on the African-American community’s well-being. They are the individuals who
are supposed to represent the people of the community. We are their
constituents, and their job is to secure the resources and establish policies
that will benefit the community. Most of the elected officials that represent
the African-American communities do not fight hard enough for the resources and
needs of our communities. However, these same individuals seem to get
re-elected over and over again. The ability of these elected officials to stay
in office is due to the following:
·
Low Voter
Turnout:
This has to change; especially at the
city and community level. African
Americans need to come out in force during these local elections. As I stated earlier, our local elected
officials are the individuals who have direct impact on our communities and the
resources they receive.
·
Dysfunctional
or non-existent community political action groups: Many African
American communities lack local political action committees. Without a well-organized
group of citizens who support specific candidates or policies, it becomes
difficult to apply any pressure on the ineffective and non-performing elected
official. The reason for this is that the incumbent usually has more money and
political clout than his or her opponents. This gives the incumbent a huge
advantage, because he or she can raise more money and thus inundate the
community with advertisements that proclaim their commitment and service to the
community. In other words, they can afford a great marketing campaign that will
hide their warts and inefficiencies as well as give them the ability to
effectively hoodwink and deceive the community.
There is strength in
numbers. Higher turnouts lead to a more
accurate reflection of the will of the people.
It also forces politicians to be more accountable for the promises they
make to their constituents.
Therefore,
the next time there is an election in your state, city, district or community,
be proactive about obtaining the facts about each candidate then galvanize your
community to make its presence felt at the ballot box.
For more information about the author of this
article you may contact him at malik@going-beyond-the-dream.org
or visit the website at www.going-beyond-the-dream.org