LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS of County

The Voter Newsletter Volume 2019-2020 Issue 10 Summer 2020 CALENDAR

June June 19 – Juneteenth June 25 – 28 LWV Virtual Convention 2020

July What’s inside: 2 – 10-12 board Meeting Calendar ...... 1 4 – Independence Day 15 – Taxes Due Co-Presidents’ Letter ...... 2

New Members ...... 3 Summer: LWV Baltimore County Annual TBA Board retreat Meeting ...... 4 LWV BALTIMORE COUNTY ... 8 All events are posted and updated at http://lwvbaltimorecounty.org/calendar

Committees and Reports ...... 8

Advocacy ...... 8 “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he Voters’ Service ...... 10 stands in moments of comfort and convenience, Programming and Events ...... 10 but where he stands at times of challenge and Of Interest in our Neighborhood 10 controversy.” Board of Directors ...... 16 -Martin Luther King Jr, American civil rights leader

PLEASE NOTE: LWV Baltimore County’s newsletter, The Voter, is printed at the JCC which is currently closed because of COVID-19. Since we will not print and mail this issue, The Voter will ONLY be emailed and on our website. Please read it online or download your own copy to distribute. This is the final issue for our League year, 2019-21. Look for the next newsletter in September.

LWV Baltimore County: Empowering residents through voter registration, education, and advocacy. LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020

CO-PRESIDENTS LETTER

Dear League Members, These are not the best of times nor the worst of times! On Saturday, June 13, we successfully held our first virtual annual meeting. Our speaker, eminent historian and writer Dr. Jean Baker, was compelling and left us with the message that the story of the fight for the right to vote for women has, in many ways, been sanitized. It was a long and hard struggle where women were denigrated, tortured, and marginalized, but through shear persistence, organization, innovative tactics, and moral commitment to principle and justice overcame many obstacles to finally succeed. Dr. Baker emphasized the right to vote as precious, still denied, and not always exercised. She urged us, with the same spirit that motivated the suffragists, to continue to register voters, observe the polls, and get out the vote. These are, after all, things we do in the best of times, and in the uneasy times as well. The tragic death of George Floyd at the hands of the police is emblematic of the worst of times. His death and its aftermath tear the scab off the wounds of the racism that has sullied the history of this country. Though there has been some progress since the riots and marches in the sixties, we are called again to recognize the evil of discrimination because of race and class, and the anger and hurt generated by a failure of equal opportunity to enjoy success and prosperity. We are called upon to examine the part we play in the persistence of “the heel of the boot” on some, while others acquire enormous wealth and power. Our agenda must include an effort to right the wrongs of the past and build a better future for all. To that end, we have adopted a local program for the coming year and received directions from the membership which will enable that goal. Several challenges are changing our operations. The COVID–19 pandemic and the measures taken to stem the incident of illness and death has curtailed many planned events including a bus trip to the National Archives and the Library of Congress, a performance of The Capitol Steps, and other gatherings. We are becoming proficient with virtual meetings and conversations but look forward to the time when we can gather in person. We hope to reschedule some of these events. We are planning brown bag lunches with speakers, which may occur in cyber-space or in person. Our new office assistant, Margaret (Maggy) Lindgren, will be in the office during the middle of the day two days a week and working from home at other times. We expect her expertise and presence will remarkably improve our ability to respond to you and to the public. As we look to the future and better times, we want to thank all of you who contribute to making the League relevant and worthwhile. A special thank you to Barbara Crain, whose work as board member and chairman of Voter Services has led to our ability to continue publishing of our Voters’ Guide and our robust efforts at registering new citizens and others to vote. This spring, Barbara and her committee published two voter guides: one for the Congressional District 7 Special Election and one for our June 2nd Presidential Primary election. These guides give our League visibility, credibility, and are always in demand. We expect to be very engaged in continuing these activities as we approach the November election. Thank you to Sharalyn Luciani, editor of The Voter and steward of communications including the Annual Meeting Workbook and Member Handbook/and Directory. The quality and usefulness of these publications cannot be underestimated. We will miss departing members of the board, Jen Haire and Barbara Hopkins. Jen, a longtime member of the board, is the chair of our Program Committee and has been central in maintaining the quality of our speakers and organizing our candidate forums. Barbara has been instrumental in leading us through our G- Suite rollout and the development and implementation of our strategic plan.

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My Co-President, Theresa (Terri) Lawler, also is leaving her post. Terri is wonderful to work with, conscientious, gracious, and thoughtful. She will ascend to the chairmanship of our endowment, the Jessa Goldberg Fund, where her expertise and careful guidance will be invaluable. Terri will replace Caroline Seamon, who is a past President of the League and has been an important contributor to the production of the Voter’s Guide and has been a conscientious steward of the endowment. We welcome our new board members, Carol Wynne, Sharon Walker, Phyllis Panopoulos, and Hannah Fishman, and my new Co-President Tana Stevenson. With all the wonderful people who are so willing to devote time to the League, we can look forward to the best of times. Sincerely, Co-Presidents Camille Wheeler Theresa Lawler

MEET YOUR NEW BOARD 2020-2021

OFFICERS JESSA GOLDBERG FUND DIRECTORS Co-President: Tana Stevenson (2020-2021) Theresa Lawler (2020-2023) Co-President: Camille Wheeler (2019-2021) Carol Allen (2019 -2022) 1st VP: Eileen Robier (2020-2021) Barbara Ensor (2018-2021) 2nd VP: Barbara Crain (2020-2022)

Secretary: Judith Schagrin (2020-2021) 2020 ‒ 2021 NOMINATING COMMITTEE Treasurer: Neilson Andrews (2020-2022) Virginia Probasco

Marjorie Simon DIRECTORS Tracy Miller Terms Ending in 2021 Terms Ending in 2022

Sue Garonzik Carol Wynne Camille Marx Phyllis Panopoulos Sharon Walker Hannah Fishman Betsy Sexton Ralph Rigger The new board begins when the League’s new year begins, July 1, 2020.

LWV BALTIMORE COUNTY Office Hours: Tuesday, Thursday: 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. By appointment Office Manager: Maggy Lindgren Contact: 410.377.8046 [email protected] www.LWVBaltimoreCounty.org .

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LWV BALTIMORE COUNTY ANNUAL MEETING

ANNUAL MEETING

Using our new Google Meet interface, we successfully launched our first digital member meeting. Attendees interacted with renowned historian Dr. Jean Baker1, presented awards of recognition, reviewed our year’s progress, voted on bylaw changes and programming, installed our 2020-2021 board, and listened to an LWV acknowledgement by speaker Adrienne Jones. The recorded program is uploaded to YouTube and is available at LWV Baltimore County 2020 Annual Meeting.

HONORING HOUSE SPEAKER, ADRIENNE A. JONES By Terri Lawler

1 Dr. Jean Hogarth Harvey Baker is professor emerita at Goucher College, where she was the Bennett Hartwood Professor of History and National Endowment for the Humanities fellow in 1982. Most recently, Dr. Baker taught in Goucher’s prison education program in Jessup, . Prof. Baker is a frequent lecturer and has authored several books. Her early years focused on the intersection of politics and the Civil War. In recent years she focused on women’s history, writing Mary Todd Lincoln: A Biography; Margaret Sanger: A Life of Passion; and Sisters: The Lives of American Suffragists. Her latest book, just published, i: Building America: The Life of Benjamin Henry Latrobe.

4 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 HONORING HOUSE SPEAKER ADRIENNE JONES The LWV of Baltimore County is pleased to present a Certificate of Honor to Del. Adrienne Jones in recognition of her unanimous election to the position of Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates. She is the FIRST woman and the FIRST African American to hold this high office. Delegate Adrienne Jones represents the 10th Legislative District in Baltimore County and was first appointed a delegate in October 1997. She was elected as one of three delegates representing her District every four years thereafter and, on May 1, 2019, was elected by her peers to serve as Speaker of the House. In February 2019, Speaker Jones received the Casper R. Taylor Jr. Founder’s Award, which is the highest award given to a member of the Maryland House of Delegates. She has three times been named to the Top 100 Women in Maryland by the Daily Record and was inducted into the Circle of Excellence for Sustained Achievement. As the first Executive Director of the Baltimore County Office of Fair Practices and Community Affairs, she served the citizens of the County for over 37 years. She served as Deputy Director of the Baltimore County Office of Human Resources until her retirement from service in Baltimore County government in June 2014. She is the Founder of the Annual Baltimore County African American Cultural Festival, which is now in its 21st year. Speaker Jones was born in Cowdensville, MD, a historic African American community located near Arbutus in Southwest Baltimore County. She attended Baltimore County Public Schools, graduated and is a proud alumna of the UMBC where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree. She received an Honorary Doctor of Law degree from Goucher College. Delegate Jones was unable to personally accept this award because of pressing matters requiring her presence in Annapolis. However, she has sent us a taped message (recorded prior to the death of George Floyd), which was played for our members attending the Annual Meeting. Arrangements have been made to deliver the Certificate of Honor to her in Annapolis. BETSY SEXTON RECEIVES 2020 VOLUNTEER AWARD! By Terri Lawler Last year our League began the tradition of annually presenting the Volunteer Recognition Award to a member of our League who has made a substantial contribution of time, talent, or treasure to further the LWV mission of empowering voters and defending democracy. We are incredibly pleased to announce that this year’s recipient is Betsy Sexton. Betsy has been a member of our League for approximately thirty-five years. She recalls “my first League job involved serving as membership chair, which in those days meant keeping records for members on file cards that were kept in a wood file box.” Betsy adds, “Reliance on technology and social media have transformed our League operations and outreach. We have all been learning together! Our first formal Strategic Plan has put us on solid footing going forward.” Over the years, Betsy has held many leadership positions, including serving as Co-President with Tracy Miller (2010-2015), Treasurer (2018), and currently as Secretary. She also served as Membership chair and currently serves as chair of the Advocacy Committee. Betsy has graciously hosted monthly book club meetings at her home for many years. Recently Betsy helped reactivate the LWV Baltimore County candidate forums for local office as well as the County Council Observer Corps. She, along with scores of local and state members, worked in a coalition that lobbied for the successful passage of local and state fair housing legislation – the “HOME Act”, which was passed in 2019.

5 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 Betsy also assisted in preparing the League’s consensus meetings on State League studies on Bail Reform and on the subject of Death with Dignity. Prior to that, she was a member of our local Immigration Study Committee (2008) and the Committee for the “Focus on Contemporary Issues” lecture series (2001 – 2007) held at Sheppard Pratt Conference Center with paid subscribers. At the state level, Betsy served as state League board secretary and coordinator for the Membership Leadership Development Initiative (2011-2013). At the national level, Betsy was involved with two programs funded by national League grants. For the Open World Program, funded by the Library of Congress, our League hosted delegations from Russia (2005), The Republic of Georgia (2009), and Azerbaijan (2012). In 2005, she served as project coordinator for “Local Voices: Citizen Conversations on Civil Liberties and Secure Communities”, a project of the National League Education Fund. When asked to list what she enjoyed most about becoming a League member, Betsy says “becoming friends with dozens of League members over the decades, studying issues in depth and facilitating consensus meetings, advocating for League positions, developing leadership skills and socializing with fellow Leaguers”. Betsy also states, “I am grateful for my husband Carlton’s enthusiastic participation in many League events. And my sons, who live in California, depend on the League’s vote411.org website at election time”. Betsy will be given a framed certificate commemorating this honor and a gold star, the award emblem, will be sewn onto her white League vest identifying her as a recipient of this award. Betsy also will be presented with two gifts, a Suffragist mug, and a Suffragist Christmas ornament. Congratulations, Betsy, on receiving the LWV Baltimore County Centennial Year Volunteer Recognition Award!

6 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 ANNIVERSARY PROCLAMATION BY COUNTY EXECUTIVE

7 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 INTRODUCING OUR NEWEST BOARD MEMBER All new board members are featured in our Annual Meeting Workbook. Hannah is our newest addition. Her bio follows. Hannah Fishman (pronounced Haw-nuh) is a Polling and Research Associate at the National Education Association and a new member of the Baltimore County League of Women Voters. She attended McDonogh School in Owings Mills, MD, and currently resides in Lutherville-Timonium. Driven by a passion to close the voter participation gap and to elect more women to local and statewide office, Hannah has had four cycles of campaign experience and has worked on campaigns in Maryland, New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. In 2019, she graduated Cum Laude from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and French. For her Senior Thesis in Political Science, she conducted a nationwide voter mobilization experiment, in collaboration with Vote.org, examining whether text messages were effective tools for increasing turnout in the 2018 elections (they were!). Using peer-to-peer texting, she sent 1.5 million text messages to voters across six states reminding them to vote. She presented her thesis at the 2018 Midwest Political Science Association annual conference in Chicago and also at Skidmore’s 2019 Academic Festival, ultimately receiving Departmental Honors and the 2019 Prize in American Government. Beyond the classroom, she organized students to be politically engaged and active on campus by planning and executing monthly voter registration and absentee ballot drives every fall semester. In 2017 and 2018, she oversaw Election Day relational get-out-the-vote efforts by enlisting students from all grades to turn their friends out to vote. This initiative, titled Votemore, led to unprecedented voter turnout on campus for off-cycle and midterm election years and for these on-campus organizing efforts she was awarded the prestigious 2019 President’s Team Award. Though she has just recently become a member herself, Hannah has worked with the League of Women Voters in the past, having coordinated with the Saratoga Springs League of Women Voters to hold Skidmore’s first ever, and now annually recurring, National Voter Registration Day event. LWV BALTIMORE COUNTY COMMITTEES AND REPORTS

ADVOCACY STUDENT SUPPORT NETWORK NEWS Laurie Taylor-Mitchell, President, Student Support Network In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and one week after Baltimore County schools closed, the Student Support Network began distributing food on two distribution sites, Parkville High School and . These opened on March 20, and a third site, Loch Raven Technical Academy, opened on May 22. All students and their families are welcome at any site regardless of where the students attend school. The sites, open on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., are now serving hundreds of students and their families every week. Parkville High School is the largest site. On June 12, in a little over two hours 430 families, a total of 2,180 people, came through for food and other essential items. Non-perishable groceries, produce, bread, and other basic household items were given to families arriving in cars or walking to sites. In some locations, school staff are delivering items to families who cannot access the sites. The Network has also distributed over $50,000 in grocery gift cards to students/families in great need as identified by school staff.

8 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 Since early March, over 110,000 new claims for unemployment have been filed in Baltimore County, a staggering shock to our residents and to the overall economy of the County. According to Feeding America, nearly 40% of people going to food distributions have never had to go before. Even before the pandemic, over 50,000 students attending County public schools lived in severe poverty, 44% of all students in the system. With job losses and illness, hunger and food insecurity have increased dramatically.

While food remains and will remain the most important part of distributions, families are also running out of essential non-food items that are not paid for by food assistance programs. The items in greatest demand are paper products and soap, diapers, and personal menstrual cycle products; about 5,300 diapers were distributed on June 12 alone, and all sites still ran out. Abby Letocha, a Girl Scout working on a Gold Service Award, has made up over 1,000 packs of period products for our sites and will continue as donations permit. The expense of these items, especially diapers, puts a huge strain on families in poverty and creates toxic levels of anxiety and stress when they do not have them. The Network will continue these distributions throughout the summer and reassess the schedules and distributions when more information becomes available about the school system’s plans for the fall and the new school year. New Program: In collaboration with the BCPS Office of Title I, the Network has begun the Food and Essentials Program for Children. This program provides grocery cards for families identified by school staff as in dire need for supplemental food— $25 per child in the family per month for four months. These families cannot get to distribution sites (no car, public transportation not feasible, can’t take off time from work, etc.) and are running out of food. In addition, homeless students, many of them “couch surfing” from place to place, do not have regular access to food, but some are in touch with their counselors and may also receive cards. The Network has committed $10,000 to this program and is currently running an appeal for donations to help children for the next four months, online at www.studentsupportnetwork.org or by check to Student Support Network, Inc., 1740 E. Joppa Rd., Baltimore, MD 21234. They have also applied for grant support for this program and will continue to do so. The Network is deeply grateful to the many members of the LWV of Baltimore County who have supported our efforts, notably Betsy Sexton and Yara Cheikh, who supported the Network by giving many hours of their time, providing drop off centers, and helping with the distributions at Parkville High School!

9 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 VOTERS’ SERVICE FOLLOW-UP ON MARYLAND’S “MOSTLY BY MAIL” ELECTION Barbara Crain Maryland’s first-ever “mostly by mail” election was held on June 2, 2020. We are still awaiting information on the total number of ballots cast in Baltimore County and across the state, though the preliminary report was that statewide turnout was greater than that for the 2016 primary. Baltimore County was spared many of the worst problems with late or missing ballots, mislabeled ballots, etc. that plagued Baltimore City and parts of Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties. These issues led to particularly long lines for in-person voting in those areas and in other densely populated areas. Elections officials were questioned during a joint committee hearing on June 16. Various aspects of the election will also be reviewed by the Maryland State Board of Elections on June 18, 2020. The format for the general presidential election in November has not yet been announced by Governor Hogan.

Kudos and special thanks to Barbara Crain and Caroline Seamon for managing and producing a beautiful and instructive Baltimore County 2020 Primary Voters’ Guide. Well done!

PROGRAMMING AND EVENTS

BOOK CLUB MEETS Wednesday, June 24 Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow Wednesday, July 22 Blowout by Rachel Maddow Wednesday, August 26 Tough Love: My Story of the Things Worth Fighting For by Susan Rice – (National Security Advisor 2013-2017) Currently, book club meetings are virtual. Everyone is always welcome, and the virtual ones are easier than ever to join. Please contact Betsy Sexton, [email protected] for the link and directions.

“Courage is the thing. All goes if courage goes.”

-Sir J. M. Barrie, Scottish writer

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OF INTEREST IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD

CENSUS UPDATE As of June 8, only 61.5% of Marylanders have responded to the US Census. Baltimore County is characteristic with 67.5%. Census results shape the future of communities, as census data inform how billions of dollars in federal funds are distributed for health clinics, school lunch programs, disaster recovery initiatives, and other critical programs and services for the next 10 years.2 Keep tabs on local response rates, https://2020census.gov/en/response-rates.html, and encourage others in your community to respond to the 2020 Census. CELEBRATE JUNETEENTH! Juneteenth commemorates the day in 1865, when the last enslaved people in America learned of their freedom. Although this was two months after the end of the Civil War (and two years after the Emancipation Proclamation), it wasn't until June 19, 1865, when Union General Gordon Granger brought about 1,800 federal troops to Galveston, Texas, and enforced the Emancipation Proclamation. Are you interested in African American history in the Chesapeake region? Celebrate this momentous date by watching local historian reenactments on YouTube3 as Dr. Herbert Brewer talks about his research into the slave ship Margaret. Its journey from London, England, to Sierra Leone, West Africa, to the Chesapeake and back to England illustrated the complex web of commercial, political, and cultural links that tied Europe, Africa, and North America together in the early eighteenth century.4 A performance of Frederick Douglass' "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July" by Joel Cook will take place in the William Brown House on July 4, 2019.5 NEW MEMBERS

LWV Baltimore County welcomes you! Marcia Daniel Nora Linstrom Nicole Tedeshi Marcia Behlert Hannah Fishman

2 https://2020census.gov/en/response-rates.html 3 This list provided by Historic London Town and Gardens, https://www.historiclondontown.org/ 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAUtfUkLxcA&utm_source=Historic+London+Town+and+Gardens+General+L ist&utm_campaign=7e6b61a270- EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_04_02_08_34_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c239a3aa79-7e6b61a270- 215265697 5https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWucHw9NKXY&utm_source=Historic+London+Town+and+Gardens+Genera l+List&utm_campaign=7e6b61a270- EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_04_02_08_34_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c239a3aa79-7e6b61a270- 215265697 11 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020

CHARLESTOWN MARCHES FOR BLACK LIVES MATTER LWV stands in solidarity with the Black community.6 In the past weeks, “people from all over this country have exercised their First Amendment rights as they protested the killing of George Floyd and the countless other Black lives that have been taken at the hands of police. We have seen peaceful demonstrators take to the streets demanding change. We have seen people of every race, religion, and ethnic background stand and kneel in solidarity with the Black community with the same message—Black Lives Matter.” Using social distancing guidelines, LWV members joined other residents at Charlestown Retirement community to rally for social justice and equality. Thank you to Phyl Lansing for sharing these photos.

“To see the right and not to do it is cowardice.”

Confucius, Ancient Chinese Philosopher

6 Jun 3, 2020 https://www.lwv.org/blog/standing-solidarity-black-community 12 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020

MY JOURNEY TO CITIZENSHIP By Carol Verlandia7 I was seven years old when I was baptized in Colombia, the country of my birth. Believing that I should be old enough to understand the sacrament, my parents registered me for baptism classes. I was excited about my baptism mainly because it was a celebratory event with flowy dresses and post baptism party. All that changed at my baptism prep. The nun drew a big circle around a group of stick figures. She then drew a lone stick figure outside of that circle. “That figure”, said the nun, “is you.” She made it clear how, after baptism, I would be magically included in that circle. Being inside the circle was like being part of an elite country club! “And I needed to be in it to enjoy all the benefits of the grace of God.” Nearly eighteen years later, I faced a similar choice. The circle this time, however, was the United States Citizenship. At 25, I decided to seek new opportunities in a country far from my family and friends in Colombia. I arrived in Baltimore and much like my seven-year self, days before baptism, I was excited about my life, emboldened by the possibilities that this country would bring. It was not too long before I faced the invisible circle, where some of these opportunities I had dreamed of were only possible if I were inside of the circle. Becoming a citizen of the United States became my dream. There are many privileges associated with Citizenship. Avoiding the indignities of being a suspected cocaine mule when I traveled on a Colombian passport (sadly, a stereotype for Colombian women), was highly desirable, but electing the president of the most powerful nation? That was exhilarating! I wanted to vote! and by doing so exercise the right to have rights in one of the largest democracies in the world. The idea of voting gave meaning and purpose to the 12 years; thousands of dollars in immigration lawyers and applications fees; weeks that tuned into months that turned into years of waiting for the next visa, the next document, the next waver, the next application; dozens of plans and trips on hold; rivers of tears of sheer anxiety, and the fear that spent me. My mother in Colombia used to light a candle in prayer every time I called her crying over an immigration matter. One day, as I was bawling on the phone, she asked if she should light a torch instead of a candle as they had proven to be ineffective. I was so thankful for her humor at that moment, I laughed and shrugged off the worry until the next day. A part of my identity was defined by the grueling immigration process. It was a litmus test of my strength and character. I had to prove myself, over and over while always taking the highway in response to the slights received while my status was temporary and ephemeral. My American family kept egging me on and supporting me along the way. ”It is worth it,” they said, “one day all of that will be a distant memory.” I have become judgmental of those who casually express scorn at the democratic process and who do not consider voting in any kind of election. “Why bother?” I hear, “things are always going to be the same”. It infuriated me! I concluded that for those who were born citizens of this country, this special status was just a birth right, an invisible privilege, that, as so many things received without effort or difficulty, loses its value and importance. Citizenship, as a legal status, is exclusionary in nature as those without this status can’t vote or have other privileges. Nevertheless, the Constitution gives all persons, regardless of their national origin, race, sexual orientation, religion, and language rights that include equal protection and due process. All persons can enroll in schools, and exercise free speech. Civil rights are supposed to be universal, a right granted to

7 Carol Verlandia, MBA, LMSW, PMP, CHI, and CEO of Equal Access Language Services LLC, is a Baltimore County LWV member. Most importantly she has been a part of Co-President Camille Wheeler’s family for eighteen years and is considered her honorary daughter.

13 LWV Baltimore County Voter Summer 2020 everyone in this country. Yet, the frequency and the gravity of recent events such as the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and many others, have really shaken my understanding of citizenship further. On the one hand, it has helped me understand the frustration many feel for the democratic process. If having the legal status of citizen of the United States does not guarantee humane treatment, or access to basic needs such as housing, education, healthcare, and food in this great democracy, then what is the point in participating by voting? On the other hand, it made it clear that citizenship carries responsibilities, as well as rights. Citizenship must carry the dual exercise of self-reflection and critical thinking as well as engaging fully with great deeds and agonistic debate (Corey, 20058). Voting is a right and a privilege that we must exert but it is not enough. We need to adopt a concept of citizenship that underscores integrity above blind obedience to laws that might be unjust. As a six-year veteran citizen of this country, I realize I do not want to belong to an exclusionary club. Being at the other side of the circle was never fun. I am inspired by the protections that our Constitution provides that go beyond legal status, that pursues practices rooted in ideas of equality and justice and engages social action in the pursuit of equal access to rights, privileges and civic duties for all persons living in this nation. LAST BUT NOT LEAST MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL, LOOKING AHEAD Our Annual Meeting speaker, Dr. Jean Harvey Baker, reminded us of the important work that the Suffragists did on our behalf and how important it is to continue that work today as it relates to voter suppression. The board will meet this summer to plan how to continue this work and how to get out the vote for the coming election. 2020 is a pivotable year, and, with the prospect of another mail-in election, our work could be more important than ever. We are also looking forward to informative brown bag lunches in the coming year. If you have a topic that you think would inform, educate, or just be enjoyed by the membership, please let Neilson Andrews or Betsy Sexton know of the topic. If we are still quarantined at home, these lunches can always take place on Zoom or by Google Meets. July, the start of our new League year, is just around the corner. This is when we ask members to renew their membership. You will receive a letter in the mail in the next couple of weeks with a return envelope for your convenience. You may also renew on our website, https://www.lwvbaltimore.org/join_or_renew. Dues as well as contributions are tax deductible. If you currently are enrolled as an Individual or Household Member, consider upgrading to a Sustaining Membership or Sustaining Household Membership. Also consider making gifts of memberships to family and friends. Student memberships are FREE for full-time students age 16 and over! What an easy way to introduce children, grandchildren, nephews, or nieces to League activities. Finally, please consider making an additional donation. Your dues enable us to fulfill our mission: Empowering residents through voter registration, education, and advocacy.

“The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look and do nothing.”

-Albert Einstein, German-born theoretical physicist

8 Socratic Citizenship: Delphic Oracle and Divine Sign, Corey, David D, 2005, The Review of Politics

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Wishing everyone a relaxing, safe, healthy summer, filled with renewal and hope.

-LWV Baltimore County

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LWV BALTIMORE COUNTY BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2019-2020

Co-Presidents: Theresa Lawler, Camille Wheeler 1st Vice President: Barbara Hopkins 2nd Vice President: Jennifer Haire Secretary: Betsy Sexton Not a member yet? Join today! Treasurer: Neilson Andrews • Call the office: 410.377.8046 Elected Directors: • Visit: www.BaltimoreCounty.org Barbara Crain, Camille Marx, Ralph Rigger, Caroline Seamon, Tana Stevenson,

Elizabeth Sexton, Eileen Robier, Judith Schagrin Newsletter: Sharalyn Luciani Office Manager: Maggy Lindgren BOARD OF DIRECTORS

League of Women Voters of Baltimore County 6600 York Road, Suite 211 Baltimore, MD 21212 Return service requested.

LEAGUE OFFICE HOURS Tuesday, Thursday: 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Office Manager, Maggy Lindgren 410.377.8046 [email protected] www.LWVBaltimoreCounty.org

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