We’ve received a number of inquiries from Hoosiers asking, “Okay, now that you’ve educated me about how gerrymandering really works and its effect on Indiana’s poor civic health, what can I do?”
First, you can attend one or both of the two hearings scheduled by the House Elections Committee. The first is Wednesday, September 15, from 1-5 p.m. The second is Thursday, September 16; it begins at 10 a.m. and will run until testimony is concluded. Both will be held in the House of Representatives chamber on the third floor of the Statehouse. Both will be webcast.
For those able to be in Indianapolis on Thursday, there will be a rally following the hearing outside the Statehouse on the Washington Street (south) side.
The remaining schedule for moving the redistricting bill through the House of Representatives is:
Sept. 20: House Elections and Apportionment Committee to review any amendments and vote on proposed maps in a 10 a.m. meeting, sending the legislation to the full House.
Sept. 22: Indiana House to vote on proposed U.S. House and Indiana House maps on second reading.
Sept. 23: Indiana House to vote on proposed U.S. House and Indiana House maps on third reading, sending the legislation to the Indiana Senate.
The schedule in the State Senate is:
Sept. 21: Initial drafts of proposed Indiana Senate maps to be posted at iga.in.gov.
Sept. 27: Senate Elections Committee to hold public hearing on proposed Indiana Senate maps.
Sept. 28: Senate Elections Committee to vote on proposed maps, sending the legislation to the full Senate.
Sept. 30: Indiana Senate to vote on proposed maps on second reading.
Oct. 1: Indiana Senate to vote on proposed maps on third reading.
There are several nonpartisan organizations taking concrete action to urge the General Assembly to draw fair maps. All welcome volunteers. In alphabetical order, they are:
ACLU of Indiana
info@aclu-in.org
Citizens Action Coalition
Lindsay Haake |lshipps@citact.org
Bryce Gustafson | bgustafson@citact.org
Common Cause Indiana
Julia Vaughn | jvaughn@commoncause.org
Indiana Black Expo
Bryan Kelley | bkelley@indianablackexpo.com
League of Women Voters of Indiana
Linda Hanson | lhanson43@gmail.com
Women4Change Indiana
Haley Bougher | haley@women4changeindiana.org
If you live in Northwest Indiana, there are several organizations that care about fair maps:
Baptist Ministers Conference of Gary and Vicinity
Pastor Corey Jackson | cdjackson1977@yahoo.com
NAACP Gary Branch
Steve Mays | scmays1@sbcglobal.net
National Council of Negro Women – Gary Chapter
Chanel Woods | ncnw@sbcglobal.net
The Links of Northern Indiana
Alesia Pritchett | aypritchett@aol.com
UNCF – NWI Indiana Leadership Council
Shelice Tolbert | stolbert@tolbertlegal.com
Urban League of NWI
Dr. Vanessa Allen-McCloud | vallen@ulofnwi.org
YWCA of NWI
Caren Jones | Cjones@ywcanwi.org
