In Support of Elected Congressional Representatives with Full Voting Rights for all Citizens of the United States, Including Residents of the District of Columbia

WHEREAS, our nation is founded on the principles of 'one person, one vote' and government by the consent of the governed; and

WHEREAS, the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides all citizens of the United States of America with the guarantee of the equal protection of the laws, and gives Congress the power to enforce this guarantee; and

WHEREAS, over 500,000 people living in the District of Columbia, the capital of our democratic Nation, are denied Congressional Representatives in the U.S. Senate and only one representative in the U.S. House of Representatives with no voting powers; and

WHEREAS, District of Columbia residents share all the responsibilities of American citizenship, including the payment of over $3 billion annually in federal income taxes, but are denied equal civil rights with their fellow Americans living in the states; and

WHEREAS, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States has found the United States to be in violation of international human rights law for its disenfranchisement of District of Columbia residents; and

WHEREAS, national polling data shows that most Americans are unaware of the disenfranchisement of District of Columbia residents, and that there are serious efforts in many states to re-enfranchise non-citizen immigrants permitting them voting rights in national, state and local elections.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP, through its national, regional and local officers and its members will work to better raise awareness and educate the American citizenry about this injustice and to take action towards a solution; and

THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NAACP re-affirms its support for full voting representation for the residents of the District of Columbia by endorsing Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and Senator Joseph Lieberman's "No Taxation Without Representation Act" (H.R. 398 and S. 195, respectively) and other similar solutions for full voting representation for District of Columbia residents; and

THEREFORE, BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, in order to ensure bipartisan support in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate for the "No Taxation Without Representation Act," we strongly encourage NAACP members to contact their members of Congress and their Senators to ask them to be a co-sponsor of this important legislation.