From Night Markets to Neighborhood Teach-Ins, L.A. Nonprofits Mobilize Voters
Baldwin Village resident Crystal Jones was perplexed about the dizzying number of state propositions on the November General Election ballot – 14 of them – so she went to a South Los Angeles teach-in to learn. There, Community Coalition organizers walked her and other neighbors through the ballot measures, filling her with confidence that she can knowledgeably vote – as she has faithfully done for 45 years.
Zainub Darsot, an oral surgeon assistant, signed a pledge card to vote at a South Asian night market in Long Beach. A colorful table set up by the South Asian Network featured the cards, along with voter registration forms, ballot guides, voting center locations, “Know Your Rights” material – and a spinning wheel to get free stickers with “Desi,” or South Asian designs.
The voter education efforts by the Community Coalition and South Asian Network are supported by the California Community Foundation, which has provided grants to several trusted nonprofit partners to help educate, engage and defend the democratic election process. CCF has poured nearly $4.5 million into efforts to help fund voter education and participation; election protection and research and engagement around three ballot initiatives, including Proposition 39.
“Since 1915, CCF has invested in what makes LA beautiful and strong,” said CCF President and CEO Miguel A. Santana. “A key part of that commitment is ensuring every community has a voice in their elections and in their government, because strong communities depend on institutions people can trust, and free and fair democratic elections are among the most important institutions we share together.”
As part of its commitment to wide voter access, CCF is particularly focused on defeating Proposition 39, which would require government-issued ID to vote in person and the last four digits of an ID number on every mail ballot. A 2020 study found that strict voter ID requirements can reduce turnout by as much as four percentage points, particularly affecting Latino voters. Voting rights advocates warn that such requirements can also create barriers for seniors, students, naturalized citizens and people with disabilities.
CCF has also joined forces with former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other partners in a campaign aimed at strengthening public trust in elections by helping voters understand how ballot processing works and the safeguards in place. Coalition members include civic, religious, business and community leaders from throughout the county and across the political spectrum.
In addition, the foundation is funding more than 35 nonprofits that serve diverse communities across L.A. County. Some nonprofits, such as ACLU of Southern California and Common Cause, are working to safeguard elections.
Vot-ER is mobilizing health care professionals to help patients register to vote and get to the polls. Two-thirds of unregistered voters say no one has ever asked them to sign up, the organization says, so inviting them to do so during health care visits could make a difference. The American Medical Association has said that voting can influence people’s health by shaping policies that affect their well-being.
Other CCF grantees include Khmer Girls in Action, which empowers young people with roots in Southeast Asia to engage voters through an educational haunted house, ballot parties and phone banking. Los Angeles Public Press has created a zine in English and Spanish to inform voters about Proposition 39 and enlisted Cal State L.A. students to make election videos, along with publishing a steady drumbeat of election news stories.
South Asian Network organizers say they are encouraging their community members to use their voice and vote to stand against harmful actions against them. Hate crimes against South Asians and Muslims, detainments and deportations by federal immigration agents, rising prices and cuts in access to food and health care have galvanized people to vote, said Saleena Dhakal, the group’s special projects coordinator.
“People are frustrated and it’s gotten to a boiling point,” she said. “People have an urge to do something. They’re ready to fight back.”
The Community Coalition has launched phone banking, canvassing, volunteer operations, ballot assistance and a possible mobile voting unit throughout South Los Angeles. At the teach-in, which drew more than 70 people, organizers connected local election participation to community needs. Federal cutbacks in food assistance, for instance, have heightened community hunger and prompted the nonprofit to organize programs to feed unhoused people and create vegetable gardens. But people have the power to vote to reverse those changes, organizers said at the teach-in.
“The conditions that we’re experiencing is all because of who is representing us at the federal level,” said Pati Guerra, Community Coalition’s director of organizing. “And that’s why we’re also bringing people together to make sure that they’re getting out the vote, and that they’re voting early.”
Jones, the Baldwin Village resident, said she is especially perturbed by the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion programs and the removal of Black history from many federal exhibits and websites under the current administration. She is ready to make her voice heard.
“They’re just trying to take it away and have us forget about it,” Jones said. “So it’s very important for me to let them know that I’m still here and I’m going to vote no matter what.”
– Teresa Watanabe
