Reporter’s notebook | The ‘Voting Matters’ project
By Nicholas House
Navajo Times
As we come to the forefront of voting, it’s important we all contribute our part. Month after month, smothered in political ads, view campaign boards on sides of the road, listen to our neighbors shout off fair floats, “VOTE for…!” I feel the least we can do is throw our hat in the ring in November.
Navajo communities face many hurdles when it comes to voting: not being in the know of who the candidates are or what they stand for, language barriers, limited residential mail delivery, transportation to get out to vote, to name a few challenges.
I’m 23, and I don’t see a lot of interest in people my age group care about voting nor even know of items getting vetoed or approved federally, in their state or their small communities, like chapters.
In my eyes before working for the Navajo Times Publishing Company, I thought it was gauche to participate in a chapter meeting or give anyone the time of day to explain to me Navajo water rights. Topics like those I thought had nothing to do with my day-to-day living. But now I understand how these neglected conversations curate how we live. We are all familiar with the term, “Eat the Rich,” but do not comprehend items on our chapter house regular meetings.
I started a mini project with the Navajo Times platform called “Voting Matters” to help encourage our people to vote this November. This project aims at voters younger than the age of twenty-five. Why, twenty-five? My theory is there’s a time in early adulthood after exercising voting a handful of times if they make it to the ballot routine.
As a voter, I am infatuated with the string of daily political ads. But before I started this project, I didn’t know of many of the voting choices I made. I just voted with people that aligned in my political party.
Now, being more involved around seeing Navajo Nation’s government I feel its reckless to vote if you don’t comprehend nor care what or who you vote in. I see a large minority of disgruntled people complaining about the situations our heads of state and political figures put us in but when questioned, if they voted. Conversations dissipate after a quick, “no,” response.
We forget that Native Americans as a whole have only been able to vote for exactly 100 years. On June 2, 1924, Congress passed the Indian Citizenship Act. We, the demographic that can vote should not take that lightly. Being proactive than complaining is rewarded. I do feel as a minority we feel unrecognized nationally. Many argue single votes don’t matter but the Electoral College does. My one vote is still weighted the same as everyone else’s in our democratic society.
This project is a montage of videos of people explaining why voting matters to them in a minute or less. It’s one thing to see a paid ad of someone promoting a person or political party, but it’s another seeing a friend, family member or another Diné speak freely of the practice of voting.
We, the people, helping in-house with this project, only ask not to disclose who a person is voting for nor their political party. A large portion of this project consist of young voters, but we also want to marble in older voters, heads of state, and non-Navajos that want to participate in this cause.
I see many different departments, publications, local advocates push our communities to exercise our voting privileges, and I hope we can aid new voters to participate.
Do go out and vote this November.
Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow