Vote Nevada Supporters,

If you are interested in the CCSD Capital Improvement Plan (the plan is for constructing new schools and rehabilitating existing buildings), here is the meeting flyer:

Here are updates on redistricting in Nevada:

The legislative interim committee on redistricting is holding a meeting this Saturday, October 23^rd, 11:00 am, to review the redistricting process and the legislative redistricting software.  You can attend in-person or virtually, the meeting information is here: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/InterimCommittee/REL/Interim2021/Meeting/24118

Other Nevada governing bodies engaged in redistricting are currently sharing proposed redistricting maps as files that can be uploaded into a range of redistricting software.  We can check these maps for Voting Rights Act compliance and view each proposed district’s demographic composition.  You do not need to draw your own maps to participate in this type of redistricting feedback, the free redistricting software includes a Validate or Integrity Check feature that is easy to use.

This feature allows anyone to upload a redistricting map into the software and then to click on the Validate or Integrity Check button to determine if the map complies with the Voting Rights Act redistricting criteria, which are:

1. Districts must be close to equal in population.
2. Districts must be as compact as possible.
3. District lines must be contiguous (the district lines cannot break anywhere in the district).
4. Communities of interest must be taken into consideration.

It is criteria #4 where we need community members to contribute their expertise about where our communities of interest exist.  A community of interest can include groups connected by race, color, or membership in a language minority group.  We can also include other characteristics based on community history.

I will emphasize again; we need as many community members as possible to look at proposed maps to ensure our communities of interest are being given due legal consideration.

Here is a website that includes redistricting data and training videos for using the free redistricting software: https://redistrictingdatahub.org/engage/training/

The ESRI redistricting software package has its own training here: https://youtu.be/jGnfVQz4JdM

You can search for redistricting information at these levels of Nevada governance:

School Boards

Board of Regents

Each City

Each County 

For example, if you go to the Clark County Commission’s redistricting website, you will see a button to download the map files and links to the free redistricting software: https://maps.clarkcountynv.gov/redistricting

If you find a governing body that is not making its map files publicly available, please contact your elected official in that governing body to request the files be made available.

We also have a Vote Nevada meeting this Saturday, October 23^rd, 9-10:30 am, via Zoom, on:

Inclusive Civics Education: Tribal Governance & Sovereignty

Panelists: Lance West, Schurz Elementary School Principal, Stacey Montooth Executive Director Nevada Indian Commission, William Bauer Director UNLV Indian Studies Program.

Please RSVP for this event if you would like to join us for a very important discussion: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMpcO6rpj4tE9TQ903oWZWG6s7YRv4rXxjR

Thank you for being Nevadans with me,

Sondra

Vote Nevada: Solving Problems with Civics

Please consider selecting Vote Nevada as your preferred nonprofit on Amazon Smile: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_uspo_laas_aas

Vote Nevada is now qualified to receive donations through Facebook fundraisers.

Vote Nevada is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit civic engagement organization.  Anyone can become a supporter by emailing info@vote-nevada.org, we have no membership dues.  We do, however, accept donations Here

Vote Nevada Supporters,

When we discuss indigenous sovereignty, we must be mindful of our indigenous Pacific Island communities as well.  Here is comprehensive information about our vibrant Hawaiian culture and the movement to protect important cultural sites on the islands: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_sovereignty_movement

Last night the CCSD Trustees discussed the district’s redistricting process and the three proposed maps. President Cavazos helped us understand that due to the pandemic the normal redistricting process was compressed, and the resulting changes have created some problems. In sum, because the normal redistricting process was not followed, problems the process was designed to avoid have appeared.

The main question debated last night was how to bring back as much of the normal process as possible to address these emergent problems and still have valid redistricting maps adopted by November 30^th.

Most of the Trustees agree that we need two more CCSD redistricting maps to consider and that we need a more open and interactive process to create those maps.  Communities of interest were unfortunately absent in the truncated process, so those voices must be added back to ensure we, the people, have fair representation.

This is a prime example of Vote Nevada’s mission: Solving Problems with Civics.  While it can be boring to focus on processes, when we fail to adhere to good processes, we can end up with results that violate civil rights.  To ensure we get back on the right track, please follow along as the Trustees strive to be responsive to the community and represent our families.  This webpage includes all the CCSD redistricting information https://ccsd.net/trustees/redistricting/

I also have an update on our October 23^rd Inclusive Civics Education event, 9-10:30 am, via Zoom.  I am happy to share that Schurz Elementary School Principal Mr. Lance West, who is working to enrich our school curriculum with indigenous history and culture, is joining our panel.  Schurz is located on the Walker River Reservation, south of Reno and Carson City, in Mineral County.

Please RSVP for this event if you would like to join us for a very important discussion: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMpcO6rpj4tE9TQ903oWZWG6s7YRv4rXxjR

Thank you for being Nevadans with me,

Sondra

Vote Nevada: Solving Problems with Civics

Please consider selecting Vote Nevada as your preferred nonprofit on Amazon Smile: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_uspo_laas_aas

Vote Nevada is now qualified to receive donations through Facebook fundraisers.

Vote Nevada is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit civic engagement organization.  Anyone can become a supporter by emailing info@vote-nevada.org, we have no membership dues.  We do, however, accept donations Here

Vote Nevada Supporters,

The National Constitution Center hosted a very interesting, and at times, heated debate over the issue of qualified immunity for the police.  It’s only one hour and well worth the time: https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/town-hall-video/for-debate-should-qualified-immunity-for-police-officers-be-abolished

I wanted to also send a reminder for three upcoming events. 

First, Vote Nevada and CSN are partnering with the Las Vegas Indian Center and PLAN to offer a viewing of American Outrage, a documentary about the Dann Sisters of Nevada, to commemorate Indigenous People’s Day.  If you’ve lived in Nevada for a bit you’ll remember reading about the Dann sisters and their legal battle to protect their cattle from government confiscation.  After the movie, you can join us for a panel discussion about indigenous sovereignty, the LandBack Movement, and the current litigation around developing a lithium mine at Thacker Pass.

Date: October 11^th    Time: 6-8 pm

You can attend in person or join us via Zoom.  We will be at the CSN West Charleston Campus, 6375 W Charleston Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89146, Building I-Room 108, 6-8 pm.  Here’s a campus map: https://www.csn.edu/charleston-map

Or you can RSVP to join us on Zoom here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIkce-pqzgvHNDF16Ba0kF80ormN7DuuFr6

To further recognize our indigenous friends and neighbors, please join Vote Nevada on Saturday, October 23^rd, 9-10:30 am, via Zoom, for a panel discussion about Inclusive Civics Education: Tribal Governments and Sovereignty.  We will discuss the history of treaties, including the U.S. government’s refusal to abide by ratified treaties with indigenous peoples, and the roles tribal governments and sovereignty play in current civic life. 

Our panelists will be Dr. William Bauer, UNLV History Professor and the Director of American Indian & Indigenous Studies Program, and Stacey Montooth, Executive Director of the Nevada Indian Commission.

You can RSVP here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMpcO6rpj4tE9TQ903oWZWG6s7YRv4rXxjR

Over the last year, we’ve seen quite a few changes to our cannabis distribution and consumption laws. One of the main topics discussed has been opportunities for people of color to qualify for cannabis distribution licenses.  Despite the fact that our past drug laws have disproportionately impacted communities of color, opportunities to enter the cannabis distribution sector have gone mainly to white entrepreneurs.

If you are interested in learning more about how cannabis distribution licensing has changed and about more inclusive opportunities to enter the industry, the Black Business Association is offering a seminar this upcoming Saturday.  The seminar is part of the larger Black Food Festival, so you can also enjoy great food and music as well.

You can learn more about the Black Food Festival and the cannabis business opportunities seminar here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1-black-festival-in-las-vegas-4th-annual-black-las-vegas-food-festival-tickets-137839600957

Lastly, redistricting has started!  We have school boards, the Nevada System of Higher Education Regents, Cities, and Counties already drawing maps and soliciting feedback. Unlike ten years ago, however, when CCSD released over twenty possible redistricting maps, this time there are only three school Trustee maps under consideration.  Many of us who have attended the CCSD redistricting community meetings have discovered some disturbing issues with all three maps, but especially with Maps 2 and 3.

You can view the current CCSD Trustees’ district map as well as the three proposed maps and the list of community meeting dates on this webpage: https://ccsd.net/trustees/redistricting/

You can also provide comments through the link that is under the three proposed maps. 

When you click on each map link, if you scroll down, under each map is a data breakdown of the 2020 Census demographic numbers, the demographic numbers for each grade level, the demographic breakdown for CCSD as a whole, and the demographic changes between the current map and the proposed map.

I attended the CCSD redistricting meeting for District G, which is Linda Cavazos’ district.  The tone of the meeting was very patronizing and disrespectful to attendees and the explanation for how the maps were internally created was missing a key criterion. 

The CCSD representatives claimed that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 only requires governing bodies to include three criteria for fair representation while redistricting.  The three criteria mentioned were, the districts must be equal in population size, compact, and contiguous. 

I pointed out that the U.S. Department of Justice recently issued a memo on redistricting that clearly includes a fourth criterion: take into consideration communities of interest.  You can read the memo and the DOJ redistricting guidelines here:

https://www.justice.gov/crt/redistricting-information

https://www.justice.gov/crt/case-document/file/1429826/download

When the meeting attendees broke into three groups to view the maps, there was consensus on these three points:

While the 2020 Census documents that Clark County has a 44.86 percent white population, four of the seven districts on Map 3 have a white majority.  Without any documentation demonstrating that this over-representation of white Nevadans in this CCSD redistricting proposal exists due to consideration of one or more communities of interest, Map 3 appears to dilute the voting power of non-white Nevadans.

Map 2 moves District G from the east side of Clark County to the southwest side of Clark County, south of Blue Diamond Road.  No explanation is given for this drastic change. District G loses over 16 percent of its Latino voters and gains over 9 percent of Asian voters.

Attendees’ questions included: Why is one Trustee losing so many voters from a community of interest and why is only one community possibly losing its Trustee due to a drastic redistricting change?  Additionally, District C on Map 2, which includes the Historic Westside’s Black community, is extended all the way out to Mount Charleston and Indian Springs.  This looks like Black voter dilution due to failing to make District C compact.

Map 1 has fewer problems and resembles the current district lines the most, but it is not concern-free. District D looks like a dinosaur and extends from the middle of the valley all the way out to Sandy Valley.  Again, this looks like vote dilution due to not drawing a district compactly.

All of these observations are based on the information provided at the redistricting meeting, which did not include any explanation for how each map was drawn and how each map complies with the Voting Rights Act.  So, UNLV Law Professor, Sylvia Lazos, asked the Legislative Council Bureau to please load the three proposed CCSD maps into the redistricting software legislators will use to draw our congressional and legislative maps.  The LCB agreed. 

This allows us to use the software’s Validate feature to determine whether all three maps comply with the Voting Rights Act.  The software will also allow community members to either alter the current maps to achieve Vote Rights Act compliance, or to draw new maps from scratch.

I will let you all know as soon as the CCSD maps are loaded into MyDistricting Nevada, but in the meantime, if you would like to use the software, you’ll need to create a free account here: https://redistricting.leg.state.nv.us/legdistricting/nevada

And review this How-To Guide for using the software: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Division/Research/Documents/MyDistrictingNevada2021UserGuide.pdf

There are still more CCSD redistricting meetings this week and other opportunities to weigh in on other redistricting maps.   Here is a link to the CCSD meetings (scroll to the bottom): https://ccsd.net/trustees/redistricting/

And here are the other opportunities to weigh in:

Clark County redistricting: https://maps.clarkcountynv.gov/redistricting

Washoe County redistricting: https://washoelife.washoecounty.gov/washoe-county/washoe-county-seeks-input-on-county-commission-redistricting/

City of Reno Redistricting: https://city-of-reno-redistricting-engagement-portal-maulfoster.hub.arcgis.com/

The Interim Legislative Committee to investigate redistricting met on Thursday, October 7^th; you can watch the meeting recording here:    https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Video/

The committee elected a chair and vice-chair, saw a brief presentation on how to use the MyDistricting Nevada software, and set some tentative dates for future community meetings.

If you need a quick refresher on why we redistrict and the redistricting process, I’ve archived all the Vote Nevada Zoom presentations and workshops on redistricting here: https://vote-nevada-blog.org/redistricting-resources/

It is vitally important for each of us to be heard in this process.  The district maps give the people the representation we are guaranteed under the U.S. and Nevada constitutions; the maps belong to the people, not the political parties. 

If you know “No taxation without representation,” then you know how long Americans have been demanding fair and accountable representation in our governing bodies. We now have the technology to amplify our voices, so, please do not allow this civic opportunity to pass by. 

Gerrymandering silences our voices, it needs to be banished once and for all.

Thank you for reading this lengthy message. I am going to add just a bit more with a reminder about our current fundraising efforts.

If you have not yet reviewed our fundraising projects for 2021-2022, you can read more here: https://vote-nevada-blog.org/2021/09/05/vote-nevada-civic-projects-fundraising/

Altogether, we are fundraising for $10,000 for our 2021-2022 civic engagement projects.  If you are interested in supporting these worthwhile endeavors, please consider donating through our

Facebook fundraising page if you are on Facebook (we pay no fees through Facebook):

https://www.facebook.com/donate/187176190048775/

Or

Our Square Donation page (we pay a small transaction fee through Square):

 https://checkout.square.site/merchant/MLAC21JKV6XNH/checkout/CEXZLRNNSBLFPFI5H4FIF2KH

Thank you for being Nevadans with me!

Sondra