DC Statehood

DC Statehood

ACTION ALERT | ISSUE UPDATE

EAST VALLEY – ARIZONA (1008-B) NAACP URGES SENATORS KYRSTEN SINEMA AND MARK KELLY TO COSPONSOR S.51, THE D.C. ADMISSION ACT

April 13, 2021

MESA, ARIZONA (April 13, 2021) – The East Valley NAACP – Arizona (1008-B) urges Arizona Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly to stand up for democracy and oppose taxation without representation by cosponsoring S.51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act.

“Despite the fact that the citizens of Washington, D.C. pay federal taxes, serve on juries and defend our Nation in times of war like most other Americans, the residents of the District of Columbia are barred from having voting representation on the floor of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate. This classic example of ‘taxation without representation’ is contrary to everything that this nation is founded on” (NAACP).

The East Valley NAACP – Arizona (1008-B) stands in solidarity with Washingtonians, and reiterates NAACP President & CEO, Derrick Johnson’s statement supporting D.C. statehood:

 “For over two centuries, Washington D.C.’s lack of statehood has been rooted in white supremacy. When Black men gained the right to vote in 1867, Congress replaced the local, elected government with three white men commissioners. Since then, opposition to statehood has been driven by false dog-whistle arguments on the city’s ability to manage its own affairs.”

“Earlier this year, white supremacists holding Confederate flags and wearing Nazi slogans were left to roam free in our nation’s capital without protection for the majority of Washingtonians who are Black and Brown, all because D.C. is not a state.”

It’s time for Arizona’s senators to prioritize making D.C. a state and end the oppression of Washingtonians of color by co-sponsoring S.51. We ask Arizonans to contact Senators Sinema and Kelly at (202) 224-3121 and urge them to cosponsor S.51, the D.C. Admission Act.

Stay Safe & Be Well,

Kiana. M. Sears, President
East Valley NAACP – Arizona (1008-B)