UUtheVote Gratitude

This fall, dozens of UUC members joined together with thousands of UUs across the country to promote democracy through various forms of voter outreach. Our efforts have been non-partisan, focused primarily on raising awareness about how voting works in local jurisdictions and why it is important for all voices to be heard, especially in areas of our country where voters have been notably disenfranchised and discouraged over the years. Among other locations, we once again worked and celebrated our efforts with fellow UUs in North Carolina and the Rev. Lisa Garcia-Sampson.

Your fellow members here at UUC were busy: writing some 2,500 letters and postcards; making over 1,000 phone calls; and sending over 5,000 text messages! (And we are betting there were even more, since we haven’t heard back from all of you about your efforts.)

Participants felt overwhelmingly positive about their experience. Here are just a few things we have heard:

• “I learned this work is easier when done in community!”
• “I felt deeply connected across the vastness and diversity of our country!”
• “We had a fun family affair, decorating our envelopes with a hand-drawn bright yellow sunshine image, thanks to an artistic grandchild!”
• “This work helped me feel useful, and hopeful!”

Thank you UUtheVoters for all your efforts. The arc is long, and the progress is slower than we might like, but we can already see evidence in this election’s results that it is bending toward greater justice!

Stay tuned friends: the effort to achieve a democracy that works for everyone goes on!

Your volunteer leaders,
Gayle Childers and Steve Carlson.