From a press release
District D Councilman Jared C. Brossett is scheduled to speak at this year’s National Urban League Annual Conference, themed “Save Our Cities: Education, Jobs & Justice.” The conference will take place Wednesday, Aug. 3 – Saturday, Aug. 6, at the Baltimore Convention Center. Participants from across the country will meet to discuss the problems currently facing African Americans and urban communities. Conference activities will focus on policy issues and work towards creating solutions to existing challenges through civic engagement, economic development and other strategies.
The National Urban League is an organization dedicated towards civil rights and social justice. The annual conference is the largest gathering of its kind.
“I’m honored to have the opportunity to represent the New Orleans community at this year’s National Urban League Conference,” says Brossett. “I look forward to bringing back insight from my peers, and applying it to bettering the quality of life for our city’s diverse communities.”
Councilmember Brossett is scheduled to speak during a session titled “My Vote, My Impact: Reclaiming Our Rights” on Friday, Aug. 5. This panel will focus on the effects of the 2013 Supreme Court ruling for Shelby v. Holder, which stripped many provisions for enforcing the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Because of this decision, state and local legislatures now have the ability to adopt policy, which makes it more difficult for certain groups of people to vote. These new policies disproportionally affect minorities and low-income communities. The session will highlight voter discrimination and how to mobilize civic engagement to combat these policies.
“Voter suppression policies defy the very notion of democracy,” says Brossett. “It’s imperative that we educate our youth to understand the importance of the Voting Rights Act and pay attention to how legislative political processes can adversely affect their rights and communities.”
