An Affront To Salamanders
Image by wirestock on Freepik.
I’m sorry, but salamanders do not deserve to be associated with dirty politics. Granted, they’re slimy and they hang out in shady places, but they enhance shady places by controlling pests not electing them. One of my fondest childhood memories is turning over rocks with my best friend Gail to find red-backed salamanders. They’d stare up at us with their little, bulbous eyes and run off on their little, stumpy legs. Such fun!
Eldridge Gerry was a Founding Father. I’d never heard of him. He became governor of Massachusetts in 1810 and in 1812 signed a bill that created a bizarrely configured - salamanderesque - state senate map that enhanced his party’s control over state and national offices. This was not the first instance of tricksy districting, but the term “gerrymandering” originated here, with Eldridge Gerry and the ill-begotten district he signed into law in 1812.
Pennsylvania is famous for gerrymandering, the subject of my most recent podcast on CK Unmuted. My guest, Ruth Yeiser, is Volunteer Coordinator for Fair Districts PA, a non-partisan, citizens group working to create a fair, transparent redistricting process. Allowing politicians to draw voting maps is a dangerous thing. It is an affront, not only to salamanders, but to people like you and me, who go to the polls believing the ballot we cast is an accurate reflection of who we voted for.
Listen to my interview with Ruth and check out the resources she offers below. Let’s work together for fair districts in PA!
Interested in volunteering for Fair Districts PA? https://fairdistrictspa.com/take-action/volunteers (There is a volunteer survey at the bottom of this page for prospective volunteers to fill out.)
Want a Fair Districts PA speaker to talk to your group? https://fairdistrictspa.com/events/request-a-speaker
Sign the Fair Districts PA on-line petition: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/join-fdpa-support-redistricting-reform-2/
Here is a general link to the Fair Districts PA “Take Action” page: https://fairdistrictspa.com/take-action
Fair Districts PA has monthly Zoom Updates (first Monday of the month 7 PM). Anyone is welcome to attend. Here's a bit of information from their website calendar and it includes the registration link: https://fairdistrictspa.com/events/2023/11/06/statewide-update-volunteer-virtual-meeting
Know some young voters who want to get involved? https://tinyurl.com/FDPA-HYVE
Here is a link to Ruth testifying on behalf of Fair Districts PA https://www.tiktok.com/@fairdistrictspa/video/7200728217815125291
