Michelle Obama, Steph Curry, and DJ Khaled share open letter supporting For the People Act
The initiative supported by Michelle Obama and others seeks to abolish hurdles in voting
This week Michelle Obama and several others joined forces to release an open letter urging all Americans to support the For the People Act.
“We write to you today as citizens who love this country and care deeply about its future,” the letter, shared Tuesday by Obama and other co-chairs of the When We All Vote organization, states. “And right now, the most important thing we can do to protect that future is to rise together in support of the For the People Act currently before the Senate—the most significant piece of legislation to strengthen our democracy since the Civil Rights movement.”
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“On January 6th, a violent mob laid siege to our nation’s Capitol, determined to overturn the results of a presidential election that their preferred candidate lost. It was a shocking and outrageous assault on our democracy—and a sobering reminder that we can no longer take our system of self-government for granted. In the months since, a new president and vice president were sworn in and some insurrectionists are now facing justice for their roles in that historic day of shame.”
“Already this year, in state houses across the country, more than 250 bills spread across 43 states have been introduced to further weaken our democracy and make it more difficult for Americans to vote,” the correspondence explains. “These bills seek to make it harder to register to vote and cast a ballot by limiting early and mail-in voting and setting up more barriers that particularly impact Black, Brown, and young people. Some of these undemocratic measures have already become law, with others surely to follow. “
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“What’s happening is this: After more Americans than ever voted in the last presidential election, some state leaders believe that silencing them is the only way to maintain their grip on power. They’re hoping to choose their voters, rather than the other way around. And if we as Americans stand idly by—if we wait for others to act or we refuse to do so with anything other than clear purpose and full-hearted patriotism—they will succeed.”
“We can do so much better as a country,” the message concludes. “But we’ll never be able to do it alone. Now is our best chance to protect and strengthen our democracy and put power back where it belongs—with the people. We ask you to stand with us.”
The letter is signed by, “When We All Vote Co-Chairs, Ambassadors and Supporters.”
Those supporters include over 60 notables including: Janelle Monáe, Kerry Washington, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Selena Gomez, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Amandla Stenberg, Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Stephen Curry, Ayesha Curry, Carmelo Anthony, Chrissy Teigen, John Legend, Common, DJ Khaled, Fat Joe, Issa Rae, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, Kal Penn, Keke Palmer, Laverne Cox, Leonardo DiCaprio, LL Cool J, Martin Lawrence, Regina King, Ryan Reynolds, Shaquille O’Neal, Taraji P. Henson, The Roots, Yara Shahidi, and many more.
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