Soca D'Vote
Caribbean American heritage Month will be the backdrop for the launch of SOCA DE VOTE 2008. ICS will partner with several Caribbean American organizations and community leaders around the country to launch SOCA DE VOTE ’08 on June 14th. Cities include: Atlanta, Brooklyn, Hampton Roads, Washington DC, and West Palm Beach which will be the hub of on-line radio campaign being coordinated by the Caribbean Heritage of Florida organization. Caribbean Heritage of Florida will focus especially on encouraging the Youth Voice and Youth Vote in the ’08 Campaign. Other plans for 2008 include developing a Listening Project around Immigration and Education Issues in partnership with the National Coalition for Black Civic Participation.
The ’08 Campaign builds on efforts begun in 2004 by ICS and the Caribbean Peoples International Collective (CPIC). The 2004 Support Our Caribbean Advancement Voter Education Campaign (“SOCA De Vote”) was conceived as a project to educate Caribbean Americans about the US political process and to deepen the participation of Caribbean American community in the democratic process. The program which was launched in 2004, focused on educational activities including e.g. distributing education material at various Caribbean-style festivals such as the Washington, D.C. Caribbean Carnival, and other gathering places within Caribbean communities in Baltimore and Miami. The 2004 campaign also included an issues forum and listening project targeting women’s issues.
Soca De Vote is a nonpartisan voter education and registration program. The campaign seeks to advance issues of interest to the Caribbean Diaspora in the United States and deepen the participation of Caribbean Americans in the democratic process.
To volunteer to organize a Voter Registration Drive in your community or join an existing effort, send email to caribbeanamerican@gmail.com
For more information go to www.socadvote.com