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Date: 6/13/2023
Subject: LWVJoCo Update: Let's celebrate!
From: LWV of Johnson County


JoCo League logo

Hello ~~first_name~~:

In this issue:
☀️ Summer social!
🥳 Juneteenth celebrations are just around the corner
🏳️‍🌈 June is Pride Month
And more!

Join us this Thursday!

We hope you can join us this Thursday, June 15, between 5 and 7 p.m. at the Tomahawk Hills Golf Course - Elmridge Room for food and fun. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet other members and catch up with members you already know. Desserts are welcome and donations appreciated. Please register below. We hope to see you there! 
 
Thursday, June 15 | 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Tomahawk Hills Golf Course - Elmridge Room
17501 Midland Drive, Shawnee, KS
 

Juneteenth is almost here

Consider celebrating Juneteenth at one (or more) of the following events:

 
The 4th Annual Advocacy & Awareness Peace March & Rally: A Juneteenth Celebration
June 17, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. | Gather at Overland Park City Hall at 10. March at 10:30. Rally at 11 a.m. at Thompson Park. Sponsored by the Advocacy and Awareness Group: Johnson County.
 
The 3rd Annual Juneteenth Freedom Celebration
Harmon Park, June 17, 4 - 7 p.m. | This family event will feature an essay contest for middle and high school students, a poster contest for elementary students, bounce houses, face painting, and more. Sponsored by STAND UP for Black Lives+ Prairie Village and the Johnson County NAACP.
 
Johnson County's Juneteenth Observance 2023
June 19, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. at the Lenexa Civic Campus Commons
This event includes keynote speaker Jessica McCallop-McClellan, live music from the Louis Neal Big Bad, and more. Find details of the event, as well as articles on Black History in JoCo, here. 

In 2023 alone, LGBTQIA advocates and allies stood up against over 650 anti-LGBTQIA bills, including some introduced in Kansas. The Kansas Legislature first passed and then overrode Governor Kelly's veto on HB 2238, a ban prohibiting trans and gender-non-conforming children from participating in sports or competitive activities.

 
Your feedback matters. See if your state representative's vote and state senator's vote represented your own views. If not, you can thank them or express your concern using this contact information.
 
Ways to support our LGBTQIA community include:
  • Taking bystander training in the the event you witness harrassment
  • Learning how to be an ally with The Human Rights Campaign
  • Learning about local advocacy in Kansas through Equality Kansas and Johnson County Pride
You can also celebrate Pride Month by visiting the two-part exhibition, "An Angel in America - Remembering Jaymes Leahy," any time in June at UMKC library's special collections gallery and the Kansas City Art Institute's gallery. Jaymes Leahy was a KCAI graduate whose life was cut short by the AIDS crisis. Learn more here (KCAI) and here (UMKC). Or, attend Pride Night at Kauffman Stadium this Friday, June 16.
 

Stay engaged and informed

  
⚖️ A voting rights win!
Earlier this month, SCOTUS affirmed a lower court decision that Alabama must create a second majority Black congressional district in compliance with the Voting Rights Act. Specifically, the ruling affirms the role of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act in ensuring that states cannot dilute the political power of Black communities during the redistricting process. Learn more in this press release from the national League.
 
🗳 November Ballot update
The filing deadline for candidates seeking local office in Johnson County passed on June 1. See the list of candidates on the Johnson County Election Office's website here.
 
🗳 Overland Park special election
If you live in Overland Park, don't forget to vote June 22 on the Mail Ballot special election. The last day to request a replacement ballot for this election is June 16. See more here.
 
🗓 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization anniversary
June 24 marks the one year anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion recognized in Roe v. Wade. In Kansas, citizens overwhelmingly voted to maintain the constitutional right to abortion access in the state constitution a few weeks later. There continue to be legislative attempts to undermine this right (see HB 2264) and lawsuits to protect it (see the Reflector's summary of this most recent here). The The League of Women Voters continues to support the right of all people in our country to make their own reproductive choices. 
 
🗣 Focus on your voice
If you missed the May program on getting involved in local issues, you can view it on our YouTube channel here. Check back for June's program on gun safety and public health! 
Questions or concerns?

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