As election day approaches, the Western Native Voice staff has worked hard to ensure that the voices in Native American communities throughout Montana resound. Getting the Native vote out has become our biggest priority. We hit the ground running in August as we continued our Natives on the Vote Path tour with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in northwest Montana and in Missoula. Our community organizers also pounded pavement, canvassing door-to-door and tabling at events in each of their communities. Excitement is growing stronger and so is the motivation to reach our goals.
Native vote history
With all of the efforts that Western Native Voice puts forth in getting out the Native vote, it is important to remember the history of voting for American Indians and the driving force behind our efforts to ensure the people utilize their right to cast a ballot. It all begins with the Snyder Act of 1924, when Native Americans born in the United States were finally granted full U.S. citizenship.
Although the fifteenth amendment, passed in 1870, gave all citizens the right to vote, regardless of race, Native American people did not truly enjoy the rights granted to them until 1965. It is a sad truth that the first ones to inhabit America were the last to receive the right to vote. However, once the fire was lit with the Voting Rights Act and the legislation that followed in 1970, 1975, and 1982, the Native American’s fight was reaffirmed and strengthened. Today we still fight in legislatures across the country to maintain equal access to the polls.