LWVE and Racial Justice

One of the goals of the League of Women Voters Edina is to advocate and participate in local action to eradicate discrimination and systemic racism. To that end, we have formed the Racial Justice Action Committee, which has three subcommittees, each with a specific focus  to engage our membership and the community. We will be publishing updates to this website as we do our work. Please check the RACIAL JUSTICE tab (above) often!

The “LWVE and Racial Justice – Our Past, Our Present, Our Future” subcommittee is studying the history of LWV and race, and assessing current LWVE membership and advocacy. Read our latest post and learn about Maria W. Stewart, an early Black suffragist who was influential well before the Civil War.

The “Voting Rights is a Racial Justice Issue” subcommittee is reviewing the intersection between voting rights and racial justice as a national issue and also exploring its implications locally. We will identify key voting rights topics relevant for racial justice including barriers limiting access to voting, as well as examining voting patterns in our community. Read the latest post and learn about voting rights and voter suppression.

“Learning and Unlearning: The History of Whiteness and Racism” describes the work of the third subcommittee. This group will provide ways for interested members of the LWVE and the broader community to learn about Edina’s history with race, racism and white privilege, offering resources to learn about systemic racism and BIPOC (Black-Indigenous-People of Color) experiences within that system, and exploring community partnerships to create city-wide events like book readings and movie nights.