CALENDAR
November 20, 2024- Presentation regarding Livingston’s Water Supply, Via Zoom, 7:30 PM. The link was emailed to you.
December 11, 2024- Holiday Party and Presentation by Youth Leaders, Livingston Community Center, 7 PM
PRESIDENTS’ MESSAGE
We apologize for not sending out an October Commentator. We were otherwise occupied with voter registration and other election-related events. Now that we’ve had time to regroup, we are sending this issue out.
Next week, we have an interesting program with a presentation by Nathan Kirakofe, Utility Engineer for the Livingston Water Department, telling us all we wanted to know about water in our town. It will take place on November 20 via Zoom. The link was emailed to you.
Our annual holiday party will take place at the Livingston Community Center at 7 PM, December 11. Our youth leaders will present a summary of their activities including voter registration, Vote 16 and plans for the rest of the year. Food will be served and you can bring a dessert. We will be collecting toiletries for Livingston Philanthropies headed by Jeff Friedman who serves the wider community in need. Specifically they need family size toiletries-shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion diapers and wipes. Stay tuned for additional details.
We have been approached to cosponsor a luncheon event with the National Council of Jewish Women on the topic of protecting children from Artificial Intelligence online on January 22. Since we had discussed this as an issue we wanted to address at our 2024-25 program planning meeting last June, we thought this would be a good opportunity. We will send further details when they are formulated.
MEMBERSHIP
Thanks you to those of you who have rejoined our League. For those who have not sent out your dues, please refer to our website to rejoin. https://www.livingstonlwv.org/
We welcome 6 new members this fall: Roberta Samuels, Martha Ackermann, Laurie Beacham, Xiaoshan He, Sangeeta Rajbal and Jill Ricardo.
The League of Women Voters of the United States is rolling out a new membership system with a new dues structure called ChapterSpot. Our presidents, membership chairs and treasurer are attending workshops describing the new process. It will not affect us this year, but will change things in the near future. We will keep you abreast of these changes.
VOTER SERVICE
We wrapped up a busy season of voter registrations, registering over 100 voters at 12 events. We went to many of the local senior housing facilities (some more than once) to register voters. Our oldest new registration was for a 103-year-old woman born shortly after women got the vote! We thank all of our members who participated in these voter registration events, ably let by voter service chair Judith Friedman.
Several of our members including Amy Ipp, Robin Weiss, Judith Friedman, Parul Khemka, Fang Gong and Xiaoshan He attended the Halloween Democracy Fest for Voting Rights in Trenton, New Jersey. This was a day of action in support of pro-democracy legislation including the New Jersey Voting Rights Act, Same Day Voter Registration, Expanded Jury Service, and more. We lobbied legislators at the State House on these issues and learned more about the legislative process. We watched our Senator John Mckeon vote to move four bills that strengthen reproductive rights out of the Health Committee. We thank members of the staff of LWVNJ for facilitating this event,.
From LWVNJ
You may have received this statement from the LWVNJ in an email regarding the recent election, but it bears repeating here:
League of Women Voters of New Jersey Statement Regarding the 2024 Election
The League of Women Voters of New Jersey president Jennifer M. Howard, MD, MPH and Executive Director Jesse Burns sent the following message to League members and supporters:
“First, thank you. You registered thousands of voters this election season, served as poll workers and poll monitors, held nonpartisan candidate forums, ran Vote411.org, combatted misinformation and disinformation, and more. Our elections and democracy are stronger because of your dedication and service. While we celebrate a fair and secure election, we will not ignore that the incoming administration’s policies and rhetoric do not align with our member positions or our organization’s values. The work we do in New Jersey building a
people-powered democracy is now more important than ever. New Jersey is on a disturbing path. Recent actions include gutting our Open Public Records Act, moving campaign finance reform backward, fighting against abolishing the line, all while also refusing to advance pro-democracy legislation. At the same time, the Star-Ledger will cease its print edition, and the Jersey Journal will cease publication entirely. Our work for climate justice, reproductive rights, economic justice, public education, immigrant justice, LGBTQ rights, and more continues to be critical as well as we work to build the future we want and fight and guard against harmful federal policies that target our communities. Accountability, transparency, and responsiveness are absent in Trenton and in many cities around our state. New Jersey must reverse these trends now and start working to protect our democracy. The League of Women Voters of New Jersey is nonpartisan, but wholly political. In the
face of federal threats, state action is critical and New Jersey must lead. If you want to work to build the kind of democracy and future we all deserve, we have a place set for you at our table (and you don’t have to bring a folding chair). We cannot close without acknowledging the various emotions many of our members are feeling right now. As an immigrant, African American, and female physician whose career has been dedicated to reproductive rights, and as a LGBTQ mother to a young daughter, we too are grappling with complex
emotions, questions, and fears. We see you and we stand with you. We also know as leaders of the League of Women Voters of New Jersey, that our movement is powerful and strong. Together, we are ready for the work ahead. Thank you”
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