Christina English- mezzo-soprano

I recently dropped a batch of letters in the mail, telling potential voters in the key swing state of South Carolina why I vote. These letters, part of Vote Forward’s “The Big Send,” are intended to encourage those who might not vote to go to the polls this year, and every year. My letters read:

I vote in every election because so many women before me fought for my right to vote, and I refuse to waste their hard-earned victory.

This is true, but I also vote because it has always been easy for me to vote. I live in a major city. I can easily make the short walk to my polling place. I have flexible work that allows me to vote when lines are short or when it is convenient for me. I have easy access to information about candidates and issues. English is my first language. I have multiple forms of government issued ID and proof of residence, although I’ve never been asked to present them. The list goes on.

It should be this easy for everyone in the U.S. to vote. But it’s not. Distant polling places. Long lines. No paid time off for voting. Complex instructions on printing, signing, notarizing, or sealing absentee or early ballots. Disinformation, confusion, intimidation…all of this and more can create an insurmountable wall that hinders many potential voters.

As we celebrate the centennial of women’s suffrage, which deserves much celebration, we must also remember that just as this right was not equally granted in 1920, it is still not equally given today. 

Don’t let your vote go to waste.

Vote, now and always, so that all U.S. citizens may someday do the same.