The League of Women Voters is made up of people who have a love of democracy and government. They are not political virgins but have spent their lives belonging to one or more political parties over the years, which is a history we expect of anyone in a political organization. Normally when a religious person wants to serve God in a religious organization, they are not atheist's. Just so, those that join the League have a personal belief system and will generally belong to a political party. If they didn't, how could they vote and try to encourage others to do so?
League members are not absent political leanings. How can you serve in a political organization and have no political history, ideas or ability to recognize issues of concern when they occur. They are not nuns who give up all of their personal history and memories. They are fervent in their beliefs so much so they they spend hours in volunteer work. While they may not shed their political leanings, they try to function in a way that does not influence others when they are trying to register people to vote. This is not easy, but when representing the league they do their best to be neutral and not influence others to their way of thinking. When they are not wearing the league robes, they have the legal and ethical right to believe anything they like just like everyone else does and to speak their mind. They don't bury their ideas.
The early suffragettes spoke up publicly demanding their right to vote. They went to prison for their speech because others feared the power women would have if they received the vote. Just so, the modern League of Women's Voters are not partisan publicly but they are political. They fight for non-partisan issues such as equality, reproductive health and justice, environmental health, educational freedom, poverty, human rights and other issues. These are universal goals and do not represent a political party.
Please recognize members of the League of Women Voters as intelligent, interesting and motivated individuals who care a great deal about where current events are leading us. They want others to recognize the power of the vote and to engage politically in shaping political events. You can't be absent ideas to engage in this effort.
Nancy Tomaselli
Hernando