The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

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Opening Public Life to Women and Girls.  Secretary of State of Hillary Clinton this week announced the launch of an Equal Futures Partnership to promote the goal of women participating fully in public life. Founding member countries include Australia, Benin, Bangladesh, Denmark, Finland, Indonesia, Jordan, the Netherlands, Peru, Senegal, and Tunisia; as well as the European Union. The action follows President Obama's call last year for the countries signing a new Declaration for Women’s Participation to "announce the steps we are taking to break down economic and political barriers that stand in the way of women and girls."

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Voices of the Rising Electorate.  The Voter Participation Center (VPC) and Balcony Films this week released a new music video and original song, “L.O.V.E. – Let One Voice Emerge,” urging women and other unregistered voters to register. "L.O.V.E - Let One Voice Emerge" is a nonpartisan outreach campaign speaking to the largest group of nonvoters in America — nearly 20 million unmarried women. L.O.V.E. is performed by popular artists Fergie, Keke Palmer, Patti Austin, Siedah Garrett, Sheila E, Brenda Russell, Judith Hill, Lalah Hathaway, and Jenna Ushkowitz.

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The Indispensable Voting Rights Acts. At a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on voting rights and the impact of unrestricted money in elections, civil rights advocates called for strong enforcement of the nation’s voting rights laws in response to a wave of new state laws that are threatening to undermine democracy and make it harder for millions of Americans to participate fairly in elections. "This is one of the greatest self-inflicted threats to our democracy – our way of governing – in our lifetimes," said Elisabeth MacNamara, president of the League of Women Voters, in testimony.

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Hate Crimes Law in Focus. In response to the recent shooting in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, that left six members of the Sikh religious community dead, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights held a hearing on the enforcement of federal anti-hate crime laws and the need to ensure that all communities are receiving adequate protection.

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Who Gets to Vote. In a clip from the new documentary "Electoral Dysfunction," an animated Mo Rocca leads us through a lesson about the history of voting rights in the United States. The film, directed by Leslie D. Farrell, Bennett Singer, and David Deschamps, takes a humorous but enlightening look at the quirks and challenges of how we elect our representatives. "Electoral Dysfunction" will air on PBS stations this fall.

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