To the Editor:

The 4th of July felt different this year. Many seem to be grappling with what feels like a country in crisis. Whether you care about civil rights and liberties, gun violence prevention, climate and natural resources or the functioning of our government institutions at all levels, there is something for everyone to be concerned about.

Fundamental to what the United States strives to be as a model of a representative democracy, is the opportunity and obligation to participate in civic discourse and to vote.

We’ve seen our voter turnout lag that of other industrialized countries for both federal and local elections and only roughly 7% of registered voters cast their ballots in our most recent community referendum (which one can argue directly impacts us the most!). It’s unclear what causes people to sit out and not make their voices heard through voting in elections and referendums, but now more than ever, people need to engage.

Most Caucasian men have had the right to vote during our country’s 246-year history, but the right to vote was not extended to all men until the ratification of the 15th Amendment in 1870 and then to women with the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920. There have been many brave Americans who fought for the right to vote and yet it seems to be something that too many take for granted.

The fights for voting rights and voting access have been fierce because voting matters! Even today the fight persists as some try to disenfranchise voters and in particular BIPOC voters.

As we mark another anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, please reflect on what you care about, what you hope this community/state/country can be, engage with groups aligned with your values, and vote like your life depends on it, because it just might.

Doria Linnetz

Newtown