The New Georgia Project
|
“The ballot is stronger than the bullet.” --Abraham Lincoln
A major focal point in 2018 for the Kelly Ann Brown Foundation centered on efforts to Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) through the gift of four grants. One grant went to Indivisible Civics—a nonprofit that works nationally on the issue of enfranchisement. Three others focused on assisting specific states: Florida, Texas and Georgia.
We were thrilled to learn of a vibrant nonprofit in Georgia, The New Georgia Project (NGP), a nonprofit 501(c)(3), located in Atlanta, Georgia. The NGP is committed to civic and political engagement for young people, people of color, and underrepresented communities through focused and effective voter education and voter registration drives. According to The New Georgia Project: "Georgia is a rapidly growing state that is becoming increasingly diverse each year. Today, over 50% of all Georgia public school children are children of color; and by the mid-2020’s, the state will be majority People of Color. Enfranchising and civically engaging the approximately 800,000 unregistered, eligible population of African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans in the state is critical to ensuring this new Georgia is fair and inclusive…The New American Majority—people of color, those 18 to 29 years of age, and unmarried women—is a significant part of that growth. The New American Majority makes up 62% of the voting age population in Georgia, but they are only 53% of registered voters." In 2014, NGP registered a whopping 69,000 through an innovative voter registration program. According to NGP: “That work continues today with NGP’s field team targeting the remaining 700,000+ unregistered citizens of color.” Their goals include registering all citizens of color by 2029 through their voter registration drives by meeting folks where they are—in churches and college campuses—and by going directly door-to-door in neighborhoods. NGP is interested in each person’s story so they can help and assist in creative ways: "We are listening to the stories of registrants who wanted to vote but did not. Many, like Stanley N., never received a precinct card and did not know where to vote; Some, like Annie A., tried to vote but were told their names did not appear on the rolls; Still others, like Dee M., were unable to leave work in time to make it to the polls. NGP is listening and learning. With the Voting Rights Act gutted, election officials are no longer required to obtain pre-approval for voting changes. We are currently seeing issues like precinct closures and reductions to early voting periods, which disproportionately affect communities of color. And we saw this last year with a new “exact match” voter registration processing system that prevented thousands from making the rolls." NGP is in constant contact and working closely with local and national civil rights organizations that defend the right to vote and that advocate for policies that expand access to voting. The New Georgia Project Executive Director Nse Ufot was happy to report back to us following KABF’s 2018 grant: "Hi Debra! Nse here. I cannot tell you how much the investment from the Kelly Ann Brown Foundation propelled our work in Georgia forward. Now that I have began to recover from the madness of 2018, I've been able to reflect on the work of NGP and I am really proud and and really grateful. Attached you will find a few photos from our 2018 work and an End of the Year report. I'm also free to talk about our 2018 efforts in greater detail via phone or video conference if you're available. A thousand thank yous, Nse" Read more about The New Georgia Project. Access their end of the year report for 2018: 
|
| ||