Vote....That Is All!

Greetings Divas and Gents! As many of you know, tomorrow is Election Day in the United States. Now, I won't bore you with a recap of the fascinating history of voting rights in the United States. Nor will I use this post to convince you to vote for the candidates that I intend to vote for tomorrow. What I will do is encourage you to get out and vote tomorrow. Do not be deterred by long lines and inconvenient circumstances. For those of you affected by Hurricane Sandy, do not allow on-the-surface obstacles stop you from exercising your right...being displaced does not mean you have to be disenfranchised. In short, PLEASE GET OUT AND VOTE!

 In honor of Election Day, here are a few tips to help you make your trip to the polls more pleasant:

- DO be patient.

- DO be sure to bring your government-issued identification...can't vote without it!

- DO be sure that you are at the correct polling site. Also, know when your site closes.

- DO wear warm clothing (if necessary). You may have to wait outdoors and you don't want the cold to deter you from voting.

- DO thoroughly read and follow the instructions for voting at your polling place. If you do not understand something, ask!

- DO bring a snack with you. Just in case the lines are long and you get a little hungry. Bring extra for your fellow voters if you can.

- DO bring your medications. In the event of a long line, you don't want to lose your place if you need to take your meds. And bring water!

- DO volunteer to bring those who need a little extra help to the polls. 

- DO NOT bring campaign paraphernalia with you to the polls.

- DO NOT leave without voting!

And...for those of you that have been displaced by Hurricane Sandy (like myself), here is some information regarding Election Day accommodations:

New York - According to the New York State Board of Elections, Governor Cuomo has signed an Executive Order "which provides for a voter who is a resident in the federally-declared disaster counties of Nassau, Rockland, Suffolk, Westchester and of New York City (which includes Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens and Richmond) who have been displaced by Hurricane Sandy too vote an affidavit ballot at any poll site in New York State, other than their regular poll site." There are some restrictions, so please see the New York State Board of Elections website for more information.

New York City - Please see this notice regarding Poll Site Changes Post Hurricane Sandy from the New York City Board of Elections.

New Jersey -  The New Jersey Department of State has issued a directive to county elections officials to permit New Jersey registered voters displaced by Hurricane Sandy to vote electronically. This directive is also applicable to first responders who have been displaced. For more information, click here.

I hope this information is helpful. Please be sure to vote. Also, follow and join me tomorrow night on Twitter as I live tweet Election Day results...from my parents' couch! Happy Voting!

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About Rocking the Slut Vote...

Divas, let's talk! Last week while I was surfing the Internet, I came across an article in the New York Daily News on the Rock the Slut Vote website. I was intrigued, needless to say, so I decided to do a little research. Well, remember back in February when Rush Limbaugh labeled Sandra Fluke, a law student at Georgetown University, a slut? Why was she deemed a "slut" you ask? Back in February, Sandra Fluke testified before the U.S. House of Representatives' Democratic Steering and Policy Committee in favor of mandating health insurance coverage for contraceptives. A couple of weeks later, the ever-so-eloquent Rush Limbaugh made the following statement on a radio program regarding Sandra Fluke's testimony:

"What does it say about the college co-ed Susan Fluke [sic], who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex, what does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex. She's having so much sex she can't afford the contraception. She wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex. What does that make us? We're the pimps."

Now I am not going to comment on the ignorance that is Mr. Limbaugh's statement, but I want to bring your attention to a byproduct of this statement: the Rock the Slut Vote website. Fed up with the war against women's rights, Susan McMillan Emry launched the Rock the Slut Vote website. According to RocktheSlutVote.com, the mission of RTSV is "to fight the GOP effort to bully, subjugate and silence women. We will wrest the power from the word slut and help women get informed, get involved, get registered and vote."

Courtesy of RockTheSlutVote.com

The RTSV movement is another attempt to reclaim and redefine the word "slut" (remember the Slut Walk Movement?). In a blog post, Susan McMillan Emry notes that "there's a long, proud history of oppressed peoples who effectively reappropriate the very pejorative terms used to demean and keep them in a lowly, disgraced place. By reclaiming the most hurtful, shaming words, groups rise up, unite and fight against intimidation and injustice. Many examples exist in modern America -- from punks to geeks, from gays to rednecks. And yes, now sluts!" 

In all seriousness, women's rights in the area of health care have been under attack for decades in both the state and federal legislatures and judiciaries. Specifically, issues involving a woman's access to contraceptives and a woman's right to abortion have been the biggest targets as of late. As we can see from Mr. Limbaugh's comments, a woman who chooses to use contraceptives and who advocates for said contraceptives to be covered under insurance is essentially a slut. RTSV takes the position that sluts vote, too. In addition to reclaiming the word "slut," the hope of this movement is that women, and male supporters, use the ballot to vote for those representatives who will protect their rights.

The RTSV website allows individuals to "enlist" to fight in the war against women, register to vote, and shop for RTSV gear (t-shirts, bumper stickers, buttons, and yard signs). The website also has an interactive, humorous quiz which help you to decide whether or not you are a slut. Your degree of slutdom depends on your response to select questions. For example, you might be a slut if you believe that criminalizing contraception is wrong...or if you believe that comprehensive, preventive women's health care is a right...or if you believe that the war on women will be settled at the ballot box. 

  

So, what do you all think about this? Is the RTSV a good way to make women aware of attempts to infringe upon their rights? Will this motivate women to get out and vote? Is there really a war against women? How effective will this movement be at we approach the November elections? What are your thoughts? Please share!

Courtesy of RockTheSlutVote.com

For more information on RTSV, check out RockTheSlutVote.com.

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