The citizens of the United States of America are empowered with rights that could move mountains. Such rights should cause us to race to the polls and vote. Unfortunately, not everyone takes this right seriously.
In recent years we have seen a vast change in how we view politics. This blog is not going to be infused with politics in any form. I can’t mention voting without mentioning the elephant in the room. It is the reason we vote. I believe it is also the reason we are see an increased interest in voting and the voting process.
There is a long history of suffrage in this country. One equal to that of the vote. The topic has shaken up the masses at different times in history.
The first vote took place within hours of the landing of the Jamestown voyagers on April 26, 1607, according to their calendar. It was the first attempt at voting on American soil. It was also the beginning of corruption. The commanders of 105 colonialists of Williamsburg unsealed a box containing a list of seven men picked in England who would be the colony’s council. They would select one of the seven as president.
We all remember Captain John Smith. They denied him a seat initially on suspicion of concealing a mutiny. Because they eliminated John Smith from the vote, that left six men, less than six percent of the population, to take part in the choice for president. Six men were the voice for the 105 colonists. Ninety-nine voices remained silent, choked out by the king’s rule.
This country has come a long way from colonial Williamsburg. We have suffered many growing pains. In the early years, they allowed only wealthy white men to vote. Male landowners controlled the interest of the population. Eventually, that changed, and it allowed all white males to vote.
In 1870 they granted the African American male population the right to vote through the fifteenth amendment. Many things didn’t change for this demographic, but it was the beginning of change. It would be almost a hundred years before the civil rights movement would cause a greater change.
We went through the woman’s suffrage movement. This movement broke down the barriers that had, for centuries, snuffed out the voice of women. They finally gave women the right to vote on August 18, 1920, when Congress ratified the nineteenth amendment.
The United States is a melting pot of ethnicity. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” (Statue of Liberty). This country welcomes the masses, through its gates (by means of citizenship). In welcoming them we give them the right to be a voice for themselves as well as for the country.
I hope each one of you finds the time today to make your voice heard.
Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash
Fair Use Notice: This article could contain some copyrighted material whose use has not been authorized by the copyright owners. We believe that this not-for-profit, educational, and/or criticism or commentary use on the Web constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material (as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Fair Use notwithstanding we will immediately comply with any copyright owner who wants their material removed or modified, wants us to link to their web site, or wants us to add their photo.