Lehman Students Oppose Voter Suppression
(Illustration by Isma Hasan)
By Zarin Siddiqua
Five weeks away from the presidential election on Nov. 3, 2020, many Lehman students fear that voter suppression will get even worse due to the current pandemic.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, a third-term Democrat, signed a bill on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020, allowing voters to request an absentee ballot if they cannot show up at a polling location because of the risk of contracting or spreading illness, the New York Times reported, effectively permitting the state’s more than 12 million registered voters to vote by mail.
However, President Trump has peddled false claims or imaginary threats about voting by mail over a hundred times this year, according to the Washington Post. The paper also reported that he accused state officials of trying to rig the outcome and encouraged people to vote twice, which is illegal. CNN stated that Trump urged his supporters in North Carolina to "be poll watchers" when they vote to guard against "the thieving and stealing and robbing" he claimed would occur as voters cast their ballots.
Against these attacks, Lehman students strongly defend the power of the vote. “Voting is my voice,” said Brain Wong, Lehman senior majoring in English. “This is how we demand change, this is how we build a better future.”
“When you don’t vote, you are losing economic opportunities, educational opportunities and the consequences could be massive,” said Lehman Africana studies and Latin American studies Professor Sarah Ohmer, who is currently working to register Lehman students to vote. “If you don’t want white supremacy in the office, come to any Lehman faculty member and we will help you register. You are not alone. This is a community movement.”
According to NBC News, voter suppression in 2020 is not allowing early voting and absentee voting. “Now in a pandemic we are seeing rhetoric intended to discourage the use of mail voting which is so important to voters wanting to cast their ballot safely from home,” said Eliza Sweren- Becker from Brennan Center for Justice. “Voter fraud is used to justify voter suppression policy that isn’t necessary.”
“If you don’t want white supremacy in the office, come to any Lehman faculty member and we will help you register. You are not alone.”
Thirty-six states have identification requirements at the polls, and seven have strict photo ID laws, under which voters must present one of a limited set of government-issued photo ID to cast a regular ballot – no exceptions, reported the ACLU. Over 21 million US citizens do not have government-issued photo identification, in large part because ID cards aren’t always accessible to everyone.
“There is a lot of voter suppression in America. Now with COVID-19, more people are going to be disenfranchised because they can’t vote like before,” said Sumana Ali, Lehman philosophy senior who is currently the Vice President of Student Government. “One of the initiatives I’m working on as the Chair of the Student Legislative Assembly is voter registration. We want to get the black and brown vote out of Lehman this year.”
“My message is to those who didn’t vote, but yet are angry about the person in the office and the changes in the nation. You could have made a change,” said Tania Camarillo, Lehman English Education Junior. “One vote matters! Your voice matters! Let’s make sure that they hear our voices as we go and vote for our rights”
Important dates:
● The early voting period runs from Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020, to Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, but dates and hours may vary based on where you live
● The deadline to request a ballot by mail is Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020.
● The deadline to register in-person to vote is Friday, Oct. 9, 2020.
● The deadline for registering by mail to vote is (postmarked by) Friday, Oct. 9, 2020.
● The deadline to register online to vote is Friday, Oct. 9, 2020.
● Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020.
City Communities Feel Unheard with Schools Reopening
(Photo via LM Otero/AP)
By Rebekah Gamble
New York City schools reopened on Sept. 21, 2020, after Mayor Bill de Blasio promised that its 1,606 public schools would offer “blended learning,” a hybrid of in-person and remote learning. Parents and guardians remain concerned that their children’s health as well as their education will suffer.
“I don't believe young children will be able to follow the rules and wear their masks all day long,” said Dania Miguel, a Lehman senior majoring in Music and obtaining her Multimedia Performing Arts BFA who is concerned about her sister starting school.
According to the medical journal Health Line, “The average adult touches their face 16 times an hour.” However, small children have even less awareness than adults about germs and the threats they pose. According to journalist Beata Mostafavi, it’s been proven that children older than age five may carry the same amount of the respiratory virus as an adult.
Although the DOE has tried to offer options regarding learning styles, parents and teachers still feel frustration. For parents, it is difficult to teach elementary school and handle their course work or jobs simultaneously. “I felt I had to choose between her education and mine,'' said Carina Xique-Tello, a Lehman senior working toward her sociology degree. “There were times when I had to multitask, and it was hard to balance our schedules.”
Xique-Tello’s younger sister will be learning remotely beginning Sept. 21. She especially found it challenging because she, like many others, has parents who are not fluent in English and the teaching methods change with time.
Remote learning was also found to be difficult for children who did not have exposure to technology before March. One Rockland County high school teacher, who wished to remain anonymous, has children of her own who didn’t adjust easily to being taught at home, despite her experience teaching younger grades. “My kids needed a lot of attention and their teachers were not available most of the time. They were never taught how to use the technology either, so they were often frustrated.”
Jessica Colon, a Lehman psychology major and junior stated, “This is horrible. My siblings did not understand how to use a computer, and there were times when we couldn’t reach the teacher.”
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo acknowledged concerns about safety for the students and teachers, CNN reported. "When we came to the reopening of the economy, I've said I'm not going to put someone in a dangerous situation. There is no money on the planet that can pay for a life as far as I'm concerned, so it's a balance, and the same is with schools."
The blended learning model which includes only 2 to 3 days of on-site teaching will be unique and face its own set of challenges. Some Lehmanities still see a brighter side to all of the disruptions.
“This is horrible. My siblings did not understand how to use a computer and there were times when we couldn’t reach the teacher.”
“My thoughts and expectations for the upcoming school year include positivity coming from myself and my children,” said Jessica Mills, a senior Africana studies major with two children, aged five and seven. She has managed to adjust while being Coordinator at the Herbert H Lehman Food Bank and serving as a Senator of the Student Government Association.
“I'm working on maintaining a now tight schedule and dedicating my time and energy to the needs of my children,” she explained. “I also expect my academics to be well maintained as it is very important to me. I wish for not only my family, but everyone to remain mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy as well this school year.”