Walaa’s Weekly Wrap-Up ~ February 22nd, 2014 ~ TickIT, Voter Registration Special

“Your Vote is Your Voice” might sound cliché but more than ever before votes and particularly black votes are a crucial decider in the 2015 General Election.

I therefore would like to wrap-up this week by talking about the power of the black vote and its importance to both the black community and politicians especially English MPs in the coming general election.

For centuries people of all colours in different parts of the world fought and in some cases even died for their right to vote. The right to have a voice and a say, the right to matter and to make a difference – our right to vote is as sacred as our right to freedom but in our community we don’t seem to give voting its significance. And that needs to change.

It appears, in recent times that right is taken for granted and in some cases replaced with apathy and a nonchalant attitude towards our involvement in the political process and our civic duty.

By involvement in the political process I don’t mean electioneering or standing for office, but just become engaged with issues that affect everyday life, then decide who you want to represent you.

The first step towards that is to register then vote.

Vote in the local elections because who you vote in decides on the number of days per week refuse is collected on your street, the amount of council tax you pay each year, streets lighting, trees planting and cutting and more serious matters like how many houses are built and where…..

Vote for the European election because many of our laws today come from the EU. Did you know the EU decides if foreign criminals have the right to stay in the UK despite of what we think. Did you also know, it was the EU that decided to cut down on the frequency of dredging rivers in the West Country. And also decided to dump the silt as refuse rather than use it to build river banks and fertilise agricultural land. The EU even decides how much we can fish and what fish to fish.

Vote in the General Election to elect your MPs and ultimately the Prime Minster of the day.

What a lot of non-voters fail to realise, is that politicians actually don’t tell us what to do as much as voters decide which politicians are elected. Sounds like a ‘Pie in the Sky.’ Then let me help you with some figures from a recent study done by the Caribbean Council of Britain.

The following calculated only those who identified themselves as African Caribbean.

Brent Central, MP Sarah Teather (LibDem) majority 1,345 number of self – identifying Caribbean 16,278, number over her majority 14,933

Croydon North, MP Steve Reed (Lab) majority 11,761 number of self – identifying Caribbean 23,802, number over his majority 12,041

Streatham, MP Chuka Umunna (Lab) majority 3,259 number of self identifying Caribbean 13,833, number over his majority 10,574

Croydon Central, MP Gavin Barwell (Conservative) majority 2,969 number of self – identifying Caribbean 11,167, number over his majority 8,198

Erdington, Birmingham, MP Jack Dormey (Lab) majority 3,277 number of self – identifying Caribbean 9,463 number over his majority 6,186

Hampstead & Kilburn, MP Glenda Jackson (Lab) majority 42 number of self – identifying Caribbean 5,719, number over her majority 5,677

Wolverhampton South West, MP Paul Uppal (Conservative) majority 691 number of self -identifying Caribbean 4,948, number over his majority 4,257

This study has shown in 56 of 168 marginal seats, the black vote can decide who is elected. That number is significant enough to make a difference to the outcome of the next election. Significant enough to make MPs currently sitting on these seats and their parties listen to our concerns.

Now “Your Vote is Your Voice” doesn’t look so dreamy, does it?

When you think, sometimes legislation in parliament is passed by fewer majorities than 56; you then begin to understand the power of the black vote.

We, black people sometimes complain that our voices are not heard, our concerns are not listened to and our opinions don’t matter. Well if we don’t vote, don’t affect change, why should what we say matter?

That is in the past, because now we have 56 reasons to register, 56 reasons to encourage our family and friends to do the same and 56 reasons to vote in every election from here on.

If you haven’t registered yet simply visit aboutmyvote.com and it gives a step by step guide to entering all your details. And if you want to hold a training meeting at your community centre, church hall or any public place go to TickIT and we’ll help you set up a training event.

Your vote is your voice and now you have 56 reasons to use it so please do.