National Organizations Kick Off ‘Parade to the Polls’ to Encourage Voting, Staying in Line
Media Contact:
Gina Physic, 202-505-4659, gphysic@advancementproject.org
WASHINGTON, DC – In an effort to increase voter turnout and encourage voters to stay in line to cast their early ballots on October 31, 2020, national organizations specializing in racial justice, human and civil rights will co-host a Parade to the Polls across five cities making nearly 20 stops along the way. Advancement Project National Office, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) are making sure voters will be entertained, nourished and educated during early voting — offering a temporary answer to one of the biggest challenges to voters of color.
Parade to the Polls stops will be made in the following cities featuring parade trucks, musical talent, educational video activations, messages from celebrities and influencers, local and national partners and talent, surprise giveaways, pizza from Pizza to the Polls, food trucks, and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream:
*All times listed in local time.
Parade to the Polls has also collaborated with Joy to the Polls to create a Spotify playlist for anyone to listen to anywhere, but especially while waiting in line to vote.
Advancement Project National Office, The Leadership Conference, and NAACP are focusing on educating voters about how to vote, and connecting the issues communities care about to what is on the ballot. With that, there are any number of barriers that voters will face. One of the barriers to voting will be long lines, particularly in communities of color. Voters in communities of color are asked to wait to vote, in many instances hours, which often leads to voter drop-off. Voters leave because of work, family, or other obligations. This has the potential to be especially true as voters arrive at polling places in a pandemic where distancing and masks are critical to maintaining one’s health.
Parade to the Polls is a national initiative to inspire and motivate communities to stay in line and increase the resiliency of voters. This year, with voters up against voter suppression, COVID-19, and other factors, it is harder for them to vote. Parade to the Polls is for those who may have childcare issues, family commitments, families who need feeding, and those who may lack the physical stamina to stand in long lines. The goal of Parade to the Polls is to make sure that every voter can cast a ballot and participate in our democracy, especially Black and Brown communities who have faced real challenges this electoral cycle.
Advancement Project National Office is a multi-racial civil rights organization. Founded by a team of veteran civil rights lawyers in 1999, Advancement Project was created to develop and inspire community-based solutions based on the same high quality legal analysis and public education campaigns that produced the landmark civil rights victories of earlier eras.
Founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the country, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is the largest and most pre-eminent civil rights organization in the nation. We have over 2,200 units and branches across the nation, along with well over 2M activists. Our mission is to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 220 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.
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