Forum on the Disenfranchisement of African American and Latino Voters March 26

March 17, 2009

Contact: Tim Rusch or Gennady Kolker, Demos, press@demos.org or (212) 633-1405

Keeping Down the Black Vote

3/26 Demos Forum on the Disenfranchisement of African American and Latino Voters

New York, NY--Despite widespread voter mobilization and interest during the 2008 presidential election, there remain persistent challenges and flaws in our election system that suppress the vote and disfranchise people of color, specifically African Americans and Latinos.

On March 26, 2009, Demos, a national, non-partisan public policy center, along with the Community Service Society and the National Institute for Latino Policy, will host a conversation with the authors of the newly published “Keeping Down the Black Vote: Race and the Demobilization of American Voters.” Demos Senior Fellow Lorraine Minnite, along with co-author Margaret Groarke, will speak about the evolution of new tactics to suppress the vote, some of which adopt the mantle of “election reform.” In their sharply argued new book, three of America’s leading experts on party politics and elections demonstrate that our political system is as focused on stopping people from voting as on getting Americans to go to the polls.

WHEN:
Thursday, March 26, 2009 from 5:30 – 7:30 pm

WHERE:
Demos, 220 Fifth Ave, 5th Floor, New York, NY


About the Speakers:

Lorraine C. Minnite is a Senior Fellow at Demos, Professor of American and Urban Studies at Barnard College, and the former Associate Director of the Center for Urban Research and Policy at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs. Her research is concerned with issues of equality, social and racial justice, political conflict and participation, and voting behavior.

Margaret Groarke is a Professor of Government and Director of the Peace Studies program at Manhattan College. She has published many articles on voting rights and suppression, and has conducted extensive research on the effectiveness of the National Voter Registration Act. Dr. Groarke also serves as co-chair of the Peace and Justice Studies Association.