ReebVotingRights@allsouls.ws
In solidarity with fellow Unitarian Universalist congregations and community organizations, we are committed to building a democratic nation where every person has the right to participate in governance, every vote is counted, and the inherent worth and dignity of every person is valued.
Our work focuses on ensuring fair access to the ballot for all, especially for communities that have historically faced barriers to voting. This includes non-partisan activities such as:
● Joining Get-out-the-Vote (GOTV) efforts in communities of color
● Advocating for the repeal of oppressive voting laws
● Supporting election integrity as poll workers, poll watchers, and line warmers
● Mobilizing for DC Statehood
Democracy is not a given—it’s a collective effort. Let’s protect it, together, grounded in our shared commitment to democracy, justice, and collective liberation.
Contact Ann Maxwell at (312) 218-1935 to get information about:
● Getting involved with current voting rights and democracy initiatives. Activities include: reaching out to voters by postcard, text, and calls; joining canvassing trips; organizing UUs to join national marches and other resistance efforts; managing volunteer databases; internal communications; strategic planning, etc.
● Joining the Reeb Leadership Team to help guide and plan our voting rights work. We are looking for organizers to help us build another world. No experience necessary!
All are welcome. We are united through love and action.
“Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and redeem the soul of America.”
Reeb Voting Rights Project nighttime protest
We do this work in solidarity with other UU congregations and community partner organizations that center the leadership of people of color. Some of our community partners:
Center for Common Ground/Reclaim Our Vote
Picture of members of the Reeb Voting Rights Project holding individual letter signs that spell Freedom To Vote at a nighttime protest
History of the Reeb Voting Rights Project
The Reeb Project is named in honor of former All Souls associate minister James Reeb who in response to Bloody Sunday answered Dr. Martin Luther King’s call and went to Selma, Alabama to march for voting rights in 1965. Before he had the opportunity to do so, he was beaten to death for by four white supremacists. Dr. King eulogized Reeb at a ceremony at Brown’s Chapel in Selma. “James Reeb,” King told the audience, “symbolizes the forces of good will in our nation. He demonstrated the conscience of the nation. He was an attorney for the defense of the innocent in the court of world opinion. He was a witness to the truth that men of different races and classes might live, eat, and work together as brothers”. His death would help push Congress and President Lyndon B. Johnson to sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965 just months later.
The Reeb Voting Rights Project was launched by All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church in 2013, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington.
Since that time, the Reeb Voting Rights Project has taken a wide array of actions such as: contacting thousands of marginalized voters by phone, text, mail, and inperson to provide critical election information; marching in the streets to raise awareness; educating UUs and others regarding the disenfranchisement of DC residents; engaging in nonpartisan actions related to voting rights legislation; and, helping protect the election process to ensure free and fair elections.
Rev. James Reeb
“We are going to have to really take upon ourselves a continuing and disciplined effort with no real hope that in our lifetime we are going to be able to take a vacation from the struggle for justice.”