Evening star., 1924-02-24
VOTELESS CAPITAL
TO Be RADIO TOPIC
Mrs. HendIey, Anthony
League President, to
FIay Tyranny Here.

litical status than the alien within
our gates, Mrs. Anna e. Hendley,
president of the Anthony League or
the District Of Columbia, will tell
radio listeners In an address to be
broadcast in the near future. She
will speak Of the denial to residents OF
this city Of the right to participate in the
affairs of government and said that
King George III, If alive today. would
laugh at the nation that revolted
from his tyrannical government, but
still exacts from nearly half 4 mill
lion of its own loyal citizens the same
unreasonable and unbearable ad-
herence.
do the people Of the United States
of America realize that the sixty
four square miles of territory In
which the Capital city is located is a
part of the United States geographi-
cally, but not politically?" she will
say. "Do they understand that the
population of this District, number
ing $4,000 persons, have neither
voice nor vote in the government un-
der which they live?
.'The federal Constitution gives eX,
elusive jurisdiction over the seat or
government to the national Congress;
and thus far Congress has no con-
strued and exercised It's exclusive
power as to bar the American citi-
zens residing in the District OF CO.
Iumbia from all participation in gov
ernmental affairs.
Entitled to Advantages.
sThese residents of Washington. the
Capital City, are as truly entitled to
the advantages of our free demo-
cratic government as are the resi-
dents of Maine, California or any
other state. Most of them live in this
particular part of the United States
for the same reasons that people live
in other parts of the country. A very
large and rapidly increasing propor--
ton were born here. consequntly had
no choice in selecting their home.
Truly are they to be pitied. that fate
placed them in the one little corner
of this great country where native
Americans are compelled to live
under that burden frors which all
other Americans We're reed more
than a century ago. II |An, taxation
without representation.
King George III OF Cngland, il
alive now, certainly would laugh at
the nation that revolted from his
Iyrannical government, but still ex-
acts from nearly half million of its
own loyal citizens the same unrea-
sonable and unbearable adherence.
These loyal American citizens pay
all national taxes with no voice in
how or when such taxes shall be laid;
have borne their part in every war
waged by the United States: paid
their full quota for liberty bonds;
and fulfilled every other duty as
stanch American citizens. And yet
they have no representation in either
Senate or House of Representatives
OF the national Congress and are de-
MED a vote in the electoral college.
which elects the President and Vice
President Of the United States. Nor
Supreme Court except through the
courts of Virginia or Maryland.
Status Lower Than Aliens.
Living under the shadow of the
dome of the Capitol, symbol of free
government, and venerated by all
progressive nations of earth. they
are still classed by the Supreme
Court itself, as lower in political
status than the alien and immigrant
within our gates.
affairs of government is becoming
more and more unbearable as new
generations of citizens come of age
and they refuse to accept the out
sufficient reason for the denial of
these inalienable rights.
When the federal Constitution was
adopted, 1T may have been necessary,
as a matter of compromise, to give
exclusive control of the Capital City
10 Congress. But changes have been
made in the Constitution. and are
Icing demanded as our population
increases and our civic life beeomes
other adjustments are being made.
we, the $4,000 residents of the Capt.
tai City, ask that an amendment be
adopted whereby we may cast a vote
for the next President of the United
States. That we may take our causes
to the Supreme Court, and that we
may have proportional representation
in Congress.
We ask this for the same reason
that our ancestors demanded it from
King George III. We want, to- have
a voice in laying taxes on our own
property. We want to be able to
take all of our causes into the Su-
preme Court of the United States for
adjudication just as citizens of other
parts of the country do. We want
to have our own representatives in
Congress. that we may hold them re-
sponsible for our welfare. We want
to tell them, if they do not repre-
sent US faithfully, that we shall re-
place them with others who Will.
Denounces School situation.
To be compelled to ask 435 repre-
sentatives and ninety-six senator's
for every dollar that we use in our
public schools, for instance, and then
not have enough to supply necessary
paper and pencils to the pupils, is
not only humiliating, but very in
convenient. We cannot get the at
tention of so large a body as the
national Congress long enough at a
time to make them all understand
our needs; consequently we are sell
dom given all that we need and never
all that we ask for.
A child with more than five hum
dred guardians is likely to be totally
neglected or killed with too much
attention. We are no longer a child.
but have reached our majority. We
have young men and women cominr O.
of age every year who want to vote
for the President of the ITnited
states. We feel the humiliation NJ
being classed with aliens. The for.
eign- born, numbering $4,000, living
within the confines of Washinrton
cannot understand why, when thav
have become naturalized as America =
citizens, that they cannot cast hal
lot. We therefore most respectfnIIv
ask the citizens of this great repuh,
lie to give to the residents OF their
capital city advantages common 70
capital cities of the republic of
Mexico, South America and the nau
republics of Europe