| Spring, 1998. Vol. 85 No. 2 |
Karyn Gill, President, League of Women Voters of California |
President's Message
California League members will have a unique opportunity this June when San Diego hosts the National Convention of the League of Women Voters of the United States at the beautiful and historic Hotel del Coronado.
It's been 24 years since the national convention met in California, and I encourage all of our state members to attend. This is your chance to hear interesting speakers, to participate in stimulating workshops, and to enjoy the camaraderie of hundreds of League members from all over the nation (see Share the Spirit.)
The principal task of convention delegates will be to approve the national League program for the next two years. The last two years have been devoted to "Making Democracy Work" in which local Leagues throughout the country engaged their communities in a successful campaign to improve civic education and increase voter participation. More than twenty of our California Leagues designed and implemented a variety of projects, such as producing videos on immigrant voting, encouraging minority representation on public boards and commissions, and establishing high school mentoring programs on voting (see Making Democracy Work in California Communities.)
Citizen education projects such as these emphasize the historic roots and basic mission of the League. The "Making Democracy Work" campaign was a "back to basics" program for local Leagues that succeeded in publicizing League principles of democratic education and participation in hundreds of communities--especially important in this era of increased citizen apathy and disillusionment with government.
The San Diego convention will give us the opportunity to hear about these successful projects and to debate the next step in our efforts to improve our democratic institutions.
This spring, local Leagues will make recommendations to the national League Board about potential programs which will then be debated and approved by delegates attending the June convention.
Some program ideas have already been sent to your local League president from other Leagues around the country, and some have been proposed on computer bulletin boards sponsored by individual League members. Others will be generated from research and study by your own local members. From these new ideas will come the impetus for League study and action for the next two years.
In past years, national convention delegates approved programs such as child welfare, reproductive rights, clean air and water, the Equal Rights Amendment, and health care. Our process of deliberative study and consensus ensures the credibility of our program positions. It is this combination of program selection and process that has given the League an unrivaled reputation for seeking the high moral ground on contemporary, cutting-edge issues.
What will be some of the key issues raised at convention this year? In my view: immigration policy; sustainable communities; the privatization of government functions; corporate welfare; the United Nations; proportional representation; and a revisit of the Equal Rights Amendment. None of these have easy answers; but, as we all know, League members never refuse a challenge. This year's national convention in San Diego should provide a rousing good show, and I invite all of our California members to be a part of it. See you June 13-16 in San Diego! Editor's note: On February 1 the LWVC Board voted to recommend Making Democracy Work/Campaign Finance Reform as its first choice for a national issue for emphasis and Sustainable Communities as its second choice.
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© Copyright 1998 by the League of Women Voters of California
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