(COLUMBUS, OHIO 05/12/2022) – On Monday, May 9, the Ohio Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Ohio) joined the League of Women Voters’ (LWV) virtual voter service training to bolster new American voter engagement.
CAIR-Ohio Staff Attorney Tala Dahbour joined the training as a guest speaker to discuss the history of American immigration policy with community members tasked with registering new American voters. New Americans, or recently naturalized citizens, can have a challenging time navigating the voter registration process and are therefore underrepresented in the democratic process. The LWV seeks to bring more new Americans into the fold by recruiting community members to facilitate the registration process for them.
Dahbour was joined by other social justice organizations to emphasize the historical disenfranchisement of immigrants, particularly immigrants of color, in the political process. Dahbour shared the importance of LWV registration efforts.
“It’s great to see the Ohio community and the League of Women Voters mobilized to register New Americans, a population which is generally left out of the conversation whether it be due to language barriers or a lack of understanding of how to navigate American bureaucracy, something that can be difficult enough the rest of us.”
View the voter service training here.
As part of its civic engagement efforts, CAIR-Ohio hosts voter registration drives at Ohio mosques and Muslim community events, particularly in the summer and fall before the November elections. If your Muslim institution or event is interested in hosting a voter registration drive, contact CAIR-Ohio Outreach and Government Affairs Director Whitney Siddiqi at wsiddiqi@cair.com or 513-904-6788.
