Easy way to register to vote

This weekend see's the 50th anniversary of Dr Martin Luther Kings historic civil rights march in Selma Alabama March 7th 1965. Our journey on the long road to equality and justice is far from over, and this important anniversary is the perfect occasion to launch our 'Reclaim Democracy' voter registration campaign for the forthcoming general election. 

OBV was founded and inspired by the work of Dr King and the Civil Rights Movement in America. Here in Britain our struggle to become equal citizens has come a long way, however the truth is that racial inequality, the gap between black and white citizens is growing not reducing. In addition we see the continual decline in voter registration and democratic participation, as a fundamental threat to the nation as a whole, inviting as it does extremism of all kinds and a disregard for the rule of law. 

If as a multicultural nation, we are to walk confidently into the increasingly diverse future, then like Dr King we must address the root causes of such alienation and anger, ensuring that desperate cynicism does not triumph over the bright optimism of hope. 

The truth is we need to reform our democracy, in order to restore public confidence and increase democratic participation. We need to shift the balance of power away from Westminster and return power, back into the hands of citizens.  

We call upon all disenfranchised communities of all colours, all faiths and all classes, to register to vote and demand reform of our ageing democratic system. This year is also the 800th year anniversary of Magna Carta and there is no better time to upgrade our 19th century system of democracy to fit the needs of our 21st century citizens.

The national OBV eXpress bus ' Reclaim Democracy" voter registration tour, will travel across the country and will see the launch of the OBV smartphone application, allowing people to register to vote on-line, take part in OBV surveys and stay in touch with OBV news and events. 

We have already hit the road with the OBV eXpress bus visiting London's Chinatown, as well as Brixton, Barking and Ilford town centres.  The response has been simply amazing, with people both registering to vote and supporting our manifesto to radically reform our democracy. 

Public confidence in politicians and democracy is probably at an all time low. However the recent Scotland referendum debate saw mass democratic participation, and illustrates that when people are offered a serious political question, capable of transforming their lives, they grasp it with both hands. And already the media are taking interest, as this recent piece in the New Statesman highlights.

And the campaign has the full hearted support of Cabinet Office Minister Sam Gymiah: 

“For me, a General Election is the greatest display of democracy in action in the world. I don’t want anybody from any walk of life, whether people from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, voters living overseas such as Armed Forces personnel, or students, to find they aren’t able to vote on 7 May. I am delighted to support the Operation Black Vote campaign to get BME groups on the register, and I look forward to seeing the bus during its tour around the country."

He went on to say, 

“Absolutely everyone who is eligible should be able to vote. Wherever you live, whatever your background or circumstances, I am determined to make sure you have the opportunity to vote.”

What we need now is your personal support. Only by communities and individuals taking individual responsibility to support campaigns such as ours, focused on getting people back onto the electoral register and democratic reform, can we halt the continuing drain of democratic engagement. 

As you know OBV relies on support from our communities and that means that every individual, organisation, faith group must now action and prioritise voter registration and restoring faith in our democracy. Its only by people power that political institutuions will hear our voice and take action. If we are not registered to vote, then however loud we shout, we remain unheard and invisible. 

We need you to join us in delivering this important campaign. Attend the events, organise your own local voter registration teams using the OBV app on your smartphone, or register to vote on line just copy:

bit.ly/OBVsignup

and paste it into your browser.

OBV Staff writer