opinion

A potent new voting force is being harnessed for the November elections: Caribbean Americans.  Although Caribbean immigrants have long been key blocs in congressional and local races in New York, Miami, Hartford, Conn., and Boston, a consortium of Caribbean organizations has launched a national, nonpartisan campaign to mobilize them.  The Support Our Caribbean Advancement Voter Registration and Voter Education ("SOCA De Vote") is focusing on increasing voter registration and turnout in Caribbean American communities around the nation.  The campaign is a project of the Caribbean People International Collective ("CPIC"), the Institute of Caribbean Studies ("ICS"), and the National Coalition on Caribbean Affairs ("NCOCA").

"Caribbean immigrants have been politically active since the first wave settled in Harlem in the 1940s," said Dawn Stewart, CPIC's founder.  "Over time, we have marched alongside African Americans and taken up their causes.  We are not trying to break with our allies, but we must ensure that our concerns as immigrants are being addressed, particularly since our numbers are growing."

Over forty percent of the two million Caribbean nationals living in the US are citizens, giving them a potential voting force of eight hundred thousand that is concentrated in the eastern US between Connecticut and Florida.  SOCA De Vote's initial outreach is therefore targeting these key states: Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia.

The rise of Caribbean Americans on the political stage, most notably in Florida's Broward County where they captured three of the five seats on the Miramar Commission, is a clear indication of the Caribbean community's potency.  Other Caribbean Americans holding office are New York City councilmember Yvette D. Clark, Hartford deputy mayor Veronica Airey-Wilson, Maryland State delegate Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, and North Miami mayor Joe Celestin.

The Caribbean vote has also been critical for several current congressional representatives, including Major Owens and Ed Towns of New York and Kendrick Meeks of Florida.  We are not advocating which party people should vote for," said Marcia Johnson-Blanco, SOCA De Vote's outreach coordinator.  "Our message to Caribbean Americans is 'register and vote in November' because in this system, your views don't count unless you vote."

Voter education is also a key part of the SOCA campaign as many Caribbean-Americans.  Since its launch earlier this year, the campaign has been registering voters and distributing education material at various Caribbean-style festivals such as the Washington, DC Caribbean Carnival, and other gathering places within Caribbean communities.  Plans are underway for similar drives in at the Baltimore's Caribbean Carnival, and in October at Miami's Carnival.  There will also be an issues forum and another voter registration event in October. 

Interested volunteers should contact the campaign at 703-441-2619 or  socadevote04@aol.com.

Soca De Vote is a nonpartisan voter registration and voter education campaign.  The campaign seeks to advance issues of interest to the Caribbean Diaspora in the United States and deepen the participation of Caribbean Americans in the democratic process.


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Soca De Vote, Getting Caribbean-Americans to the polls
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