This session is designed for people active in the voting rights and election integrity movements to come together to listen deeply to each other and build on our common goals toward a unified movement for true democracy in the U.S. The voting rights movement of last century has evolved into a vital force struggling against both new methods and the revival of old methods of voter disenfranchisement including intimidation, voter purging, voter ID laws, felon disenfranchisement laws, discriminatory application of provisional voting rules and failure to count votes. The voting rights movement has also led efforts to ensure that all voters are able to vote, regardless of disability or minority language access needs.

Meanwhile, the new movement for election integrity has focused on the dangers presented by new election technology, investigations of election manipulation in recent years and "election protection" efforts at the polls.

This session will be an opportunity for members of both movements to understand each other's goals and priorities and plan ways to unify these mostly separate but naturally allied movements, including identifying points of unity as well as joint and complementary strategies to guide us as we move forward. Working together, those present will identify concrete actions to take back to our own groups as well as our various networks and coalitions.

We will be informed by a historical perspective on voting rights including past problems with rigging of elections using paper ballot systems that have led some people of color to favor electronic voting, the parallels between poll taxes of old and current and pending voter ID laws, and the commonalities and differences between old and new methods of voter disenfranchisement.

A unified movement for democracy that can speak broadly to the people of the U.S. is our best hope for triumph over current corporate/government control and discriminatory manipulation of the mechanisms of democracy, now in the hands of those whose commitment to retain power is greater than their commitment to follow the law.

The workshop will include brief presentations by panelists including:

-Nancy Abudu, Staff Counsel, ACLU
-Helen Butler, Executive Director, Coalition for the Peoples’ Agenda
-Kimberly Haven, Justice Maryland
-Emily Levy, Velvet Revolution
-Cynthia McKinney, former Congresswoman from Georgia's 4th District, featured in the film American Blackout
-Alma Rosa Silva-Bañuelos, former Election Protection Coalition State Director for NM (2004), Cultural Center for Power and Justice

The majority of the workshop session will be guided/facilitated discussion with interactive exercises employed where useful.

The workshop will be conducted in English. There are not current plans for interpretation. Handouts will be provided in English and possibly in Spanish, at the discretion of panelists.