Speaking the Truth: Local Leaders Discuss the Barriers and Concerns Naturalized Citizens May Have During Election Day
By Tiffany Rivera on September 30, 2024.
Miranda Alexander, the founder of The Caribbean Community of Philadelphia; Al-Sharif Nassef, a Campaign Manager from All Voting is Local, Vivian Chang, Executive Director for Asian Americans United and Will Gonzalez Esq., executive director of Ceiba, a Latino Nonprofit organization. Photo: Inti Media.
On November 5, voters will head to their local polling places to cast their vote for President of the United States. However, in a city like Philadelphia, many immigrant voters may feel vulnerable while trying to head to the polls, as the voting process can be an overwhelming experience for some.
On Thursday, September 18, the Committee of Seventy partnered with The Welcoming Center and The Museum of The American Revolution to discuss the obstacles immigrant voters may face in their “Pathways to the Polls: Enhancing Immigrant Voter Participation” event. The discussion, moderated by Jennifer Rodriguez, the President & CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, revealed the importance of voter information amongst new citizens who will be voting in Philadelphia and the different ways the city can guide them to provide a successful experience.
The Museum of The American Revolution, where the “Pathways to the Polls: Enhancing Immigrant Voter Participation” event took place. Photo: Inti Media
The panel consisted of Miranda Alexander, the founder of The Caribbean Community of Philadelphia; Vivian Chang, Executive Director for Asian Americans United; Will Gonzalez Esq., executive director of Ceiba, a Latino Nonprofit organization, and Al-Sharif Nassef, a Campaign Manager from All Voting is Local.
Rodriguez stated that in 2024, roughly 16% of the population are foreign-born, meaning their vote can be a deciding factor for November’s Presidential election.
“The power is there to take, immigrants in this state could really be the turning point of this election if we help them realize how important it is to vote, how meaningful their vote is to the outcomes of the elections at the national level,” Rodriguez stated.
Jennifer Rodriguez, the President & CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Photo: Inti Media
According to the Pew Research Center, nearly 1 in 10 eligible voters in the U.S. are naturalized citizens. The research also stated that the government has been processing citizenship applications, at its fastest rate in years. While only naturalized immigrants can vote, Rodriguez emphasized that other immigrants can be involved in the civic process by “volunteering during Election Day.”
“You can participate in the civic realm, there are issues that are important to you, and you have family and friends that are probably eligible to vote,” she added. “So making sure that you help them register if they're not registered, that you keep tabs on them and encourage them to go to the ballot box.” Rodriguez continued, “There is a lot of work and roles that a lot of people who are not yet naturalized can still play in the voting process.”
Building trust within the community
“There is a lot of discourse around representation and what energizes people; what is gonna build that lasting relationship of trust is that we know that elected officials have our back, are they protecting our communities from deportation?” - Vivian Chang, Executive Director for Asian Americans United. Photo: Inti Media
Chang spoke about the lack of trust that some immigrant voters may have when it comes to the system and how important it is to gain their trust. They may see the lack of representation and become less involved in the voting process.
“There is a lot of discourse around representation and what energizes people; what is gonna build that lasting relationship of trust is that we know that elected officials have our back, are they really protecting our communities from deportation?”
On the same day of the event, Mayor Cherelle Parker announced her support for the new Philadelphia 76ers arena to be built in Chinatown, a plan that has the city divided. Since the announcement of the possible development, a majority of Chinatown residents and Asian business owners have voiced their displeasurement.
Chang gave the example of how this situation can either motivate people or de-energize them. Community members may be passionate about local politics; however, if their voices and concerns are not being heard, this may demolish the trust of their local politicians.
“We see a lot of times, people get activated in local elections, so they feel like, ‘Oh, I can meet my council member, they live on my block or I see them in the neighborhood,’ so that helps people establish a closer relationship with their government,” she said.
“But if then what happens is, ‘Oh, my community is gonna be destroyed by an arena, and I called my councilmember, or I called my mayor and I showed up to meetings and it's not working,’ then that doesn't make people energized to vote,” she continued.
Nassef also brought up that many residents feel powerless and discouraged to vote when there is a belief that there is no impact.
“They issued a report that the United States is no longer categorized as a democracy, this is a really sad and alarming reality where we are considered to be a plutocracy, where money dictates policy rather than people,” he said. “If we truly want to see us live up to the promise of our country, we have to do everything we can to get big money out of politics.”
There are a few organizations in Pennsylvania doing exactly that. For example, The March on Harrisburg, a non-partisan grassroots organization that was developed in the Spring of 2016 that began with a 140-mile march from Philadelphia to Washington D.C. They are using their voices to ensure that billionaires aren't throwing money into elections.
“Anytime billionaires are pouring so much money into this election, people are like, ’you know what, it doesn't matter if this or that party gets elected, I don't feel like my reality or life is being improved by either of them because they will be holding that special interest,’” said Nassef.
Misinformation, fake news, and language accessibility are important challenges to the immigrant vote
Another concern that came up at the event is the confusion when it comes to the voting polls. Many American-born citizens know where to go to vote, but that cannot be said for naturalized citizens. Some may not know much English, and others may be confused about the process in general.
For instance, they may not know how to register to vote online given their language barrier. Organizations such as The Welcoming Center are there to help with the process of registering to vote and heading to the polls. TWC also provides immigrants with free English classes and other workshops including, entrepreneurship programs that offer business technical assistance and business planning courses for immigrants.
Miranda Alexander, the founder of The Caribbean Community of Philadelphia and Al-Sharif Nassef, a Campaign Manager from All Voting is Local, at the “Pathways to the Polls: Enhancing Immigrant Voter Participation” event. Photo: Inti Media
Nassef says that good governance and reflective democracy are both ways to get more people involved. Still, there are also language barriers, which Nassef is hoping will decrease.
“We are lucky that here in Philadelphia, there are resources available from our elected officials, in language, guidance materials, you heard it from me first but the Department of State is going to be making news very soon on whether there is going to be materials available in a swarth of languages unprecedented in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” he said.
As immigrants are often viewed as a monolith, during the discussion, Alexander highlighted that not all immigrants are created equal.
“When you are a refugee or a person of color, the barriers are higher. Everything becomes much more difficult. And the marginalization and disenfranchisement, everything becomes much more difficult,” she said.
Chang said for citizens to get more involved in the voting process, it’s important to get them involved in local politics. This means, not only getting them to vote for the Presidential election but also cast their votes twice a year in local politics.
“There are issues that are so much closer to folks' hearts, so how do we activate that, because I think that what we're all saying is that voting is a practice, it's a habit,” she said.
Will Gonzalez Esq., executive director of Ceiba, a Latino Nonprofit organization. Photo: Inti Media.
Will Gonzalez expressed that one way to energize younger citizens to vote is to teach them the importance of it at a young age. Those children will then go to their parents and talk to them about how their vote matters.
“I think that some of the investments that have been made with the youth will pay off,” he said. “We used to do some events with the Committee of Seventy to do engagement with some of the children, not because they were turning 18, but just to get them involved and use them as trusted messengers with their parents.”
A real investment is needed to bring more people to the polls
Another topic that was mentioned is financial barriers within the immigrant community. For instance, Gonzalez stated that many immigrant families who are just settling, may not be able to afford a new ID. They may even lose their birth certificate during the process of settling.
“Voters must present ID, which costs $41.50, which is a lot for a low-income family. There is also [a] lack of birth certificate, that can be hard on someone as well, there are a lot of challenges.”
Another obstacle that may come to the surface is that many citizens, naturalized or born, may not be able to take the day off of work to vote. Many jobs, such as within the restaurant industry, do not give workers time off to vote. This is a crucial element in one of several reasons why immigrant votes are lacking.
In countries such as Brazil, Australia, and Belgium, voting is a mandatory action. They must show up to the polls, even if they don't intend to vote. However, if citizens from those countries don’t vote, they are demanded to pay a fine.
Some people believe that this law is alarming because it leads to blind voting. Sometimes citizens do not do their research on their candidates, which leads to pandemonium and an unfair winner. In Australia, the term “Donkey Vote” is where voters pick a candidate without giving it any thought, instead solely picking the first name on the ballot.
However, countries such as the United States and Canada do not have those laws. For one, the United States is protected by the Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and the creation of the Voting Rights Act.
As Pennsylvania is a battleground state, Gonzalez mentioned the importance of every vote: “The election decision rests with the people of Pennsylvania.”
He also made a call to the Latine population, which historically has a low voting turnout: “When we look at young Latinos, it is a growing population that has political power. Now you have political power in your hands. Exercise it.”
The Committee of Seventy provides many resources to elections to access and get informed
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