Evening star., 1935-11-28
VOTELESS PLIGHT
OF D. c. EXPLAINED
VoteIess D. C. League of
Women Voters Hears
Pointed Report.

Lc AlcQultduLc pO1AtlCdl olIudIlOAA
In the District caused by lack of ma
tional representation was pointedly
presented at a meeting Of the Vote
less D. c. League of Women Voters at
its meeting in Barker Hall Tuesday
evening.
One Of a number of department re-
ports. it was presented by Mrs. He'd
ley v. Cooke, chairman of the De-
partment of Government and its
Operation, in response to questions
asked from the floor by pretended
newcomer from Missouri.
The queStioner asked to be in
formed where and when she might
register for the next primary election
in the District.
Mrs. Cookies full statement, point
ing out the existing inequity here as
well as its cure and how the indi-
vidual may help, follows:
IT am from Missouri myself and I
sympathize with you for wanting to
know about voting in your new home.
am sorry. and really rather ashamed
to have to inform you that you are
one of half a million disfranchiSed
American citizens in the District of
Columbia.
This is because the Constitution
written a century and a half ago
when conditions were very different
from what they are now, in fact
when there was no city of Washing
ton, provided that Congress shall
have exclusive legislation over such
district, (not exceeding ten miles
square) which by cession by particu-
lar States and acceptance by Con-
gress, shall become the seat of gov
ernment That district is the Dis
trict of Columbia
This means that we in the District
Of Columbia are governed by COM
mittees of Congress whose members
live in sometimes far distant States
We have a King from Utah and
Queen from New Jersey. We suffer
bled and died to resist-'Taxation
without Representation.
We must pay taxes - far the
greater part of the cost of running
the city of Washington am told it
was about 83 per cent last year and
/: that all government buildings are
exempt from taxation. Our taxes
are high and are going higher. Our
: per capita is one of the highest of
any large city in the United States.
We must obey the laws we have no
; voice in making. We women must
, stand ready to send our husbands and
sons and brothers to war to protect
the country but we cannot vote!
There is no commoner question of
Jurisdiction in our courts than that of
, diversity of citizenship. We in wash
1ngton are Disseminated against so
far as suits in the Urited States courts
are concerned. We are denied the
right, which even aliens have, of suing
and being sued in the United States
courts in cases in which the citizens
, Of another State are involved.
I'VE have none of the rights of even
constitutional monarchy. The Eng
lish people are nowhere Disseminated
against in electing their members of
Parliament. London is not deprived
of its vote because it is the capital city
of the United Kingdom. Even in
Rome and Berlin and Leningrad the
people have some sort of voice in the
government-or think they have. But
We of the District of Columbia are
stripped of our citizenship. Democ-
racy does not exist in the District Of
Columbia.
What does the League of Women
Voters think should be done about
this? We believe that we should Co
operate with other public-spirited citi-
zens and civic organizations to demand
National representation. We believe
that We should back vigorously the
joint resolution now in Congress CIV
ing us representation in Congress and
in the Electoral College to vote for
President and Vice President and the
right to sue and be sued in the United
States courts. And please remember
that we are not asking for full suf-
frage nor for setting up Of State
government. Surely it is little enough
we ask!
What can you do, Mrs. Newcomer?
When you go back to Missouri you can
tell your friends of the status of Amer
icsn citizens living in Washington.
I imagine very few people in the States
realize that we are deprived of the
ballot here. Ask them to urge their
Legislatures to memorialize Congress
to help us have some of the privileges
which they themselves enjoy.
I'VE women we're excluded from
voting for many generations because
we we're women. We we're classed with
criminals, idiots and children. Now
we are deprived of the vote because
we are residents of the Capital City
of the United States. We are penal
lied for living in Washington"