Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins first observed the importance of having the right to vote while she was a child. She would watch her grandmother pick cotton in the morning and teach school in the afternoon so that people could learn how to write their names to be able to vote, since a law - designed to disenfranchise illiterate minorities, particularly the Black community - required the ability to write in order to vote.
Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins took up the baton to become a life-long advocate and activist for civil rights and social justice. She is a voice for under-represented populations and served two terms as the President of the League of Women Voters of the United States and Chair of the League of Women Voters Education Fund, being the only woman of colour to have ever done so.
Retired Ambassador Carlo Krieger served around the world in Brazil, China, Russia and as Deputy in the embassies of Washington D.C. and Vienna. His academic passion is social anthropology, and in this conversation we learn about Carlo’s knowledge of how Native Americans are discriminated against when it comes to their right to vote.
Meghan Dean is the U.S Embassy of Luxembourg’s spokesperson. She served as a Deputy Spokesperson for European Affairs and at the State Department Operations Center, the Secretary of State’s 24-hour crisis management and communications centre in Washington, D.C. Meghan also served at the U.S. Embassy in Skopje, North Macedonia and on the State Department’s Ukraine Desk. Meghan is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer from Albania and Georgia. She talks about the Electoral College, the complexity of the American elections, and that it’s not one Federal election but 50 state elections.
On the evening of Tuesday, 8 October 2024, Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, was in Luxembourg at the behest of Miami University Luxembourg Foundation’s inaugural event, supported by the US Embassy in Luxembourg.
Listen to the podcast here:
The minority vote is not a minority. The Native American voice through a social anthropologist lens. The American Elections are complex.
Related:
In case you’re curious about how the United States elections work, discover Part 1 of the Explainer Series - Your essential guide to understanding the US presidential election.
Please do subscribe via Apple and / or Spotify. It would be great if you could rate and review too – as it helps others find the podcast.
Tune in to The Lisa Burke Show on Today Radio Saturdays at 11am, Sundays at noon, and Tuesdays at 11am.
Contact Lisa here.
