CONCORD, NH —On Friday, 24 people became American citizens in a naturalization ceremony hosted by the New Hampshire Secretary of State.
“It feels amazing,” said new citizen Luanna Currie, originally from Brazil. NHPR.
Elected officials urged newly minted citizens to get involved in civic life in a state that prides itself on opportunities to participate in democracy from our first-in-the-nation primaries to town halls to our truly massive citizen legislature (the third largest largest in the country). -speaking world).
And Viola Katusiime is helping them figure out how to do it.
Originally from Uganda, Katusiime is now deputy director of the Granite State Organizing Project, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that focuses on social justice issues such as affordable housing and workers’ rights.
Katusiime said the project also encourages civic participation, especially among people of color and new Americans who may not be familiar with American-style democracy. The project has programs in Manchester and Nashua, two of the most diverse cities in the state.
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“We saw the need in the communities we were working with,” he said. She was surprised by how many people didn’t have a basic understanding of what was on the ballot.
Katusiime said the project has been working to fill gaps for new immigrants. They hire pollsters to educate the community about the voting process and voting rights. They also collect information about who is eligible to vote, who is registered but has not yet voted, so they can encourage people to participate in the process. Katusiime said they also encounter people who were previously incarcerated and are not familiar with their rights.
The organization provides information and hosts events to educate people about how to register to vote and where their polling place is. Katusiime said it’s like a civics class, explaining the different races at the national, state and local level. The organization also translates materials into other languages (Spanish, Kiswahili, Kinyarwanda, French and Arabic) so that everyone can understand them.
“I think the hardest thing is that people don’t know where to go to get the right information and are confused about the whole process,” Katusiime said. But, she added, people have issues that really matter to them, such as economic issues, the cost of health care, housing and the affordability of food.
“Our job is to make sure that we help them really understand how their vote can make a difference in the election, but also in their lives,” he said.
This story first appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, our free newsletter, focused on the news you need to know about New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles from elsewhere. If you would like to receive it by email Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
You can contact Amanda Gokee at amanda.gokee@globe.com. follow her @amanda_gokee.
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