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A.J. Walker’s great-grandmother told her that, as a Black woman growing up in Houston in the 1950s, she could have lost her life if she ever tried to vote.

“Even though (Black) people already had the right to vote, she said she couldn’t because disenfranchisement was so high. People literally died,” Walker said. “Now, she doesn’t care what happens. She has to go out and vote.”

Walker, a Syracuse University senior studying television, radio and film and film studies, is the leader of Project 444, a campaign led by SU athletes with the goal of getting 444 student athletes registered to vote in the upcoming election.

Lila Nazarian, an SU graduate student and women’s lacrosse player, has been working with Walker, who is a cheerleader, as well as other student athletes to host virtual events to educate students about voting.

“We see (voting) as a really critical part of adult development and leadership development, especially for student athletes,” Nazarian said.

As the 2020 presidential election nears, groups like Project 444 will be hosting events and projects to prepare SU student voters.

The New York Public Interest Research Group is launching a Civic Olympics campaign this year to promote voter registration in the state, said Ethan Gormley, the project coordinator for SU and SUNY-ESF’s chapter of NYPIRG.

The campaign encourages participants to reach out to as many people they know and get them registered to vote.

“The Civic Olympics should be a really fun and competitive way for students to feel more engaged in the democratic process at large,” Gormley said. “It’s so easy for students to feel disconnected from the political process, but the Civic Olympics is really to help students become more hands-on and realize it’s not so hard to register to vote.”

With health and safety measures in place to combat the coronavirus pandemic, NYPIRG and Project 444 have taken to virtual programming and social media.

NYPIRG has been holding virtual office hours using the group’s Instagram page on Wednesdays and Fridays. During the meetings, members of NYPIRG address any questions students may have and offer one-on-one registration services, Gormley said. Student representatives also visit online lectures to talk about how to register to vote, he said.

We’re out here at DellPlain registering students to vote until 1! Swing by to talk to us about voter reg., absentee ballots, and upcoming deadlines!

A photo posted by nypirg_suesf

Nazarian and Walker host weekly virtual bootcamps on Project 444’s Instagram page on Tuesdays and Fridays. They also want to host Zoom watch parties for the upcoming presidential debates and are planning a voter suppression workshop set for October.

The group paneled a “4 Challenges 4 The Vote” webinar last Monday and hosted a virtual dialogue training event Wednesday night, Nazarian said.

Nazarian and Walker said their main focus is educating students not only about how to vote, but also what they’re voting for.

Most students don’t realize that there are local propositions on their ballot in addition to presidential candidates, Nazarian and Walker said. Students need to know ahead of time what those propositions are, they said.

“Things on a local level affect you so much more,” Walker said. “We’re trying to get people to vote not just for this election but for every election.”

Not everyone knows their states’ specific voting laws, which can make the process even more confusing, Nazarian said.

“The rules are so complex, and a lot of times intentionally, so that the process outweighs the motivation to vote,” she said. “So we’re trying to balance those scales a bit.”

The New York state voter registration deadline is Oct. 9. Voters in New York state have the option to vote in-person at polling places or by absentee ballot and may cite coronavirus as a concern.

Onondaga County voter turnout rate in the 2016 general election was about 74% voter turnout, according to data from the Board of Elections. NYPIRG’s goal is to have the student voting block ready to go by Nov. 3, Gormley said.

“It’s so easy for students to think their vote doesn’t matter or their opinion isn’t being valued by those in power,” Gormley said. “But the student vote, maybe now more than ever, is so important because students have so much to fight for.”

Walker said there’s a sense of urgency surrounding this election and that many voters have lost their faith in the voter system.

“People’s belief in the voter system is low,” Walker said. “I vote, not only for my great grandmother, or my grandmother, or my mother, but also because of the change that can be made and has been made because of voting.”

Published on September 29, 2020 at 11:48 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan