The League of Women Voters is an American political organization founded in 1920[1] by Carrie Chapman Catt during the last meeting of the
National American Woman Suffrage Association approximately
six months before the Nineteenth Amendment to the United
States Constitution gave U.S. women the right to vote. It began as a "mighty political experiment" aimed to help
newly-enfranchised women exercise their responsibilities as voters. Originally, only women could join the LWV; but in 1973 the
charter was modified to include men. The LWV is a grassroots organization with chapters in all 50 states plus the District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The LWV has approximately 150,000 members (as of 2006). [2]
The LWV is nonpartisan, meaning it does not endorse or oppose political candidates or parties at any level of government. The
LWV does support or oppose many political issues after studying them and coming to a consensus on a position. The LWV works to
increase understanding of major public policy issues, and to influence public policy through education and advocacy, as well as
through political lobbying of Congress.
The LWV is organized into two complementary halves: Voters Service and Citizen Education; and Program and Action.
Voter Service and Citizen Education
The Voter Service and Citizen Education portion of the LWV informs and educates voters about candidates, the electoral process
and issues on which the LWV has no position.
The League of Women Voters Education Fund sponsored the 1976, 1980, and 1984 presidential debates. In 1988, the LWV withdrew
from debate sponsorship, in protest of the major party candidates attempting to dictate nearly every aspect of how the debates
were to be conducted, which ultimately resulted in the Democratic and Republican parties forming the Commission on Presidential Debates which gave the parties greater control over the
debate environment.
On October 2, 1988, the LWV's 14 trustees voted unanimously to pull out of the debates, and on October 3 they issued a
dramatic press release:
The League of Women Voters is withdrawing sponsorship of the presidential debates ... because the demands of the two campaign
organizations would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter. It has become clear to us that the candidates' organizations aim to
add debates to their list of campaign-trail charades devoid of substance, spontaneity and answers to tough questions. The League
has no intention of becoming an accessory to the hoodwinking of the American public.
The LWV continues to sponsor and moderate candidates' meetings and debates for local and state elections across the country.
The LWV puts out voter's guides that compare candidates' positions on various issues. Some chapters of the LWV also staff
precincts on Election Day helping to administer elections. The LWV is a strong supporter of transparency in government and many
chapters send members to observe meetings of governmental bodies.
Program and Action
The Program and Action portion of the LWV studies issues, develops consensus positions and lobbies for changes in law and
public policy. Program and Action is divided into four broad categories: Representative Government, International Relations,
Natural Resources, and Social Policy.
Representative Government
The LWV supports "an open governmental system that is representative, accountable and responsive." [3]
The LWV has worked to reduce barriers to voting, to implement campaign finance reform, and to prevent gerrymandering. The LWV
is a strong supporter of transparency in government and in Open Meeting
Law. In 2003, the LWV worked to incorporate key voter protection and civil rights provisions into Help America Vote Act (HAVA). In 2004, the LWV lobbied Congress in favor of the bi-partisan
Security and Freedom Ensured Act (SAFE) which attempted to scale back
some portions of the PATRIOT Act which impact on individual liberties.
International Relations
The LWV believes that that that the United States should "promote peace in an interdependent world by working cooperatively
with other nations and strengthening international organizations". [4]
The League is a strong supporter of the United Nations. During the 1940s, the LWV launched a nationwide campaign to build
public support for the United Nations. The LWV was one of the first non-government
organizations affiliated with the UN.
The LWV supports a liberal U.S. trade policy aimed at reducing trade barriers and expanding international trade.[5]
Natural Resources
The LWV works to "promote an environment beneficial to life through the protection and wise management of natural resources in
the public interest". [6]
The League has worked to promote clean air, clean water and to manage solid waste in an environmentally sound way.
The League was a strong proponent of the Clean Air Act of 1990. The League continues to
work for stronger Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to
improve energy efficiency and reduce pollution.
The League promoted the passage of the Clean Water Act of 1987.
Social Policy
The LWV works to "secure equal rights and equal opportunity for all, to promote social and economic justice, and to secure the
health and safety of all Americans." [7]
The League has worked on a broad range of activities under the rubric of Social Policy including ending racial discrimination,
providing equal access to quality education, fair housing, health care, and gun control.
Specifically in the area of gun control, according to the organization's website,
"The 1990 League convention took the rare step of adopting the gun control position by concurrence at convention. Proponents
had sent two informational mailings to all Leagues before convention, and spirited debate on the convention floor persuaded the
convention to concur with the statement proposed by the LWV of Illinois. Following the convention action, the LWVUS wrote to all
members of Congress, announcing the League’s new position on gun control and urging passage of federal legislation to control the
proliferation of handguns and semi-automatic assault weapons in the United States. In 1991, the League joined with other
organizations to support legislation banning semi-automatic assault weapons. In 1992 and 1993, the League supported congressional
passage of the Brady bill, to institute a five-day waiting period and background check for the purchase of handguns. Following
enactment of the Brady bill in November 1993, the League stepped up its lobbying efforts in a successful 1994 House campaign to
force inclusion of the assault weapons ban in the final conference report on omnibus crime legislation." [8]
The League of Women Voters endorsed and supported the Mother’s Day 2000 Million Mom
March of the Brady Campaign through the activities of many league members across
the country who participated in the event, as well as by the official involvement of the organization's leadership and board.
[9]
See also
External links
References
- Handbook for Members. Boston: League of Women Voters of
Massachusetts.
- Impact On Issues: 2004 - 2006. Washington,D.C.: League of Women Voters of
the United States. ISBN 0-89959-446-8.
- Louise M. Young, In the Public Interest: The League of Women Voters, 1920-1970 (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1989.)
ISBN 0-313-25302-1
Notes
- ^ About Us, an organization profile at www.lwv.org
- ^ New member welcome, at www.lwv.org
- ^ League of Women Voters: "Impact on Issues: 2004 - 2006. A Guide to Public
Policy Positions", page 6. League of Women Voters, 2005
- ^ League of Women Voters: "Impact on Issues: 2004 - 2006. A Guide to Public
Policy Positions", page 25. League of Women Voters, 2005
- ^ statement of trade position at www.lwv.org
- ^ League of Women Voters: "Impact on Issues: 2004 - 2006. A Guide to Public
Policy Positions", page 40. League of Women Voters, 2005
- ^ League of Women Voters: "Impact on Issues: 2004 - 2006. A Guide to Public
Policy Positions", page 56. League of Women Voters, 2005
- ^ Gun Control, a history of the League of Women Voters position since 1990.
- ^ Gun Control, a history of the League of Women Voters position since 1990.
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