Social Justice Activists Gather to Discuss Voter Suppression at W.K. Kellogg Foundation's America Healing Convening

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Apr 25, 2012, 04:00 ET

NEW ORLEANS, April 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A panel of social change activists will examine the multiple ways in which organizations and leaders are building innovative voter protection and education campaigns by using the media, community engagement and other strategies to protect the rights of voters of color and to ensure that all votes count. Historically, Jim Crow laws and other forms of voter intimidation were used as tactics to suppress the inclusion of people of color—especially black voters and equally Native Americans, Asian American and Pacific Islanders and Hispanic/Latinos communities—each experiencing various forms of voting suppression. It was not until the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 that our nation proactively created measures to secure the votes of people of color. Recently, several states have enacted structural barriers that limit civic participation and voices of communities of color. This panel will discuss how federal and state laws, voting regulations and community education impact full democratic participation.

Who: Moderator: Maya Wiley, President and Executive Director, Center for Social Inclusion

Panelists:

Judith Browne-Dianis, Co-Director, Advancement Project
Genaro Lopez-Rendon, Director, Southwest Worker's Union
Alvin Warren, Principal and Executive Vice President, Blue Stone Strategy Group

What: "Addressing Voter Suppression" Plenary Session at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's America Healing Convening

When: Thursday, April 26, 2012
10:15 a.m.—11:45 a.m.

Where: New Orleans Marriott
Balcony N, 4th Floor
555 Canal Street
New Orleans

Transcripts will also be available for download from www.wkkf.org or www.AmericaHealing.org.

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.

The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Mich., and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.

About America Healing
WKKF launched America Healing 2010 to support programs that promote racial healing and address racial inequity, with the goal to ensure that all children in America have an equitable and promising future. In 2011, it hosted the first America Healing conference in Asheville, NC, and this year's conference is being held April 24 - 27, 2012, in New Orleans.

SOURCE W.K. Kellogg Foundation