Voting with one of Dad’s favorite hats

‘Vote mijita, no matter what, vote! Su Voto es su Voz, always remember that, your vote is your voice.’ I remember my dad first introducing this message to me when I was in elementary school. He tried to instill in me at an early age the importance of voting. I remember listening to his stories of struggle and injustice, but they were just that, stories. I couldn’t connect to the meaning just yet, but like a good daughter, I listened and promised him when it was my turn to vote, I would vote.

Over the years I watched my dad cast his vote for every election he was eligible to vote in, from School Board, to County Commissioner, to City Council and Presidential elections. As my dad got older his health made it difficult for him to get to the polls, but he always managed to “find a ride.” My dad set an expectation and modeled being a responsible, educated, and active participant in the democratic process. He would tell me things like, ‘If you didn’t vote, don’t complain about the fools in office, Su Voto es su Voz, always remember Your vote is your Voice.’

I would encounter these words again and again throughout my high school and college career. The National Hispanic Institute, a high school leadership program, helped me put these words into action through debates, youth government programs and teaching us to be educated about our political system, the history of Latino politics and the responsibility of voting. I began to feel these words come to life.
Throughout college, I not only studied social work, but I also studied Chicano politics and immersed myself in political activism. I remember learning about Willie Velasquez and the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project’s moto- Su Voto es su Voz,Your Vote is your Voice. I embraced Willie’s and my dad’s words with a new passion. I could hear these words in my head each time I picked up a sign to protest or march in the streets of Austin, Chicago and Washington D.C. After every event I’d call my dad and he would say something like ‘Great you did all that, but did you vote?’ He and I didn’t always agree on the role of political activism, but I respected point of view and admired his commitment to voting.

He would encourage anyone about to reach voting age to register to vote. He never told anyone who to support or not support, he just told them to vote. I remember showing him my first voter registration card and how happy it made him. His face, at that moment is etched in my memory. Even now, each time I cast my vote, I think of my dad and all the people before me who fought and died for the right to vote, those who endured poll tests and poll taxes, threats and intimidation, suppression and oppression just so I could have the right to vote.

I don’t write this to tell you who to support or not support, but I write this to encourage you to participate in the democratic process, just like my dad encouraged me, Su Voto es su Voz,Your Vote is your Voice!