Select an issue concerning voting rights or practices and briefly tell us your thoughts about it.
As a new immigrant in the United States, I knew very little about voting rights in the United States until our school coordinator, Mrs. Jessica Handrik, introduced me to a project from the League of Women Voters of Vermont.
She asked me to create a presentation of photographs accompanied by a song from another Winooski High School student, encouraging people in my community to vote.
As I spent time with materials from League of Women Voters, I saw that the goal was to inform the community about non-resident voting and urge them to vote. I also discovered that by encouraging non-citizens to participate in the voting process, we were asking them to do something that had not happened until this year.
I was not previously aware that only American citizens were eligible to vote, and those without citizenship were barred from voting. Having non-residents voting in Vermont, in my opinion, demonstrates a fair action because people from various backgrounds have different viewpoints on American culture and they can contribute their voices to this new country making it a stronger country overall.
Making voting available to non-citizens can make things easier for them because it allows them the ability to express their needs and advocate for change in their community. Even though I have never voted before, I would encourage people to vote, particularly those from my culture, because I perceive language as a barrier to voting. Many of the parents would not vote since they spoke little English. With adequate assistance, many of our parents will be able to vote and express their opinions on the changes they wish to see.
As the event progressed, I utilized my camera to capture photographs of the other students from WHS going to vote, and through those images, I demonstrated the voting procedure. I subsequently shot those photos and adjusted them in class at Burlington Technical Center, where I studied photography.
I was delighted to be able to assist the League of Women Voters in creating the video by sharing my talent and urging others to vote. I am proud that we were able to finish the project and we were able to present it to our school and encourage people to vote.