Today we honor the incredible life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who dedicated his life to fighting for equality and justice.
Today we honor the incredible life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who dedicated his life to fighting for equality and justice.
Through his work and teachings, he raised our nation’s conscious to the possibilities that come with faith, hope and love. Today’s America suffers deeply from division and polarization. Our leadership is failing to unify us the way Dr. King did and we have forgotten his creed of living together as brothers and sisters.
Even worse is the fading memory of Dr. King’s admonition that we must “Judge one another based on the content of our character and not the color of our skin.”
May we on this day, as a nation, rediscover Dr. King’s teachings and reexamine our own actions.
One of Dr. King’s many contributions to our nation came on May 17th, 1957 when he reminded us of the power of the vote. Here are some key excerpts from that speech:
"Give us the ballot and we will no longer have to worry the federal government about our basic rights …
"Give us the ballot and we will no longer plead to the federal government for passage of an anti-lynching law …
"Give us the ballot and we will fill our legislative halls with men of good will…
"Give us the ballot and we will place judges on the benches of the South who will do justly and love mercy …
"Give us the ballot and we will quietly and nonviolently, without rancor or bitterness, implement the Supreme Court's decision of May 17, 1954."
The phrase “Give us the ballot’ is a powerful statement illustrating the impact of voting in our society and the importance of everyone voting.
Every citizen has the right to vote. No one has the right to interfere or diminish the exercise of this right. Our right to vote and our right to secure and fair elections are a sacred institution that must be defended and held up to the highest standards. Every voter must know their votes will count. Dr. King’s principles of equality and fairness resonate to this day, even if forgotten by some. I am grateful for these powerful lessons and I pray for the wisdom to follow these principles in the conduct of my life.
On this day of remembrance, I call on all of the good people that guide our elections to remember with awe what we have been entrusted to protect. The sacred right to vote deserves every bit of your rigor, attention to detail, and in some cases your fearless vigilance to defend our elections from malfeasance or poor execution in order to maximize feelings of pride and trust in the institution of elections. Accountability awaits those who seek to tilt the system for political gain or inject complexity and stir the clouds of partisan passion that ultimately diminish the trust of all voters.
Thank you for your continued support and God Bless Connecticut,
Dominic Rapini