[Cyverse.Nappn] Statement re: 2022 Conference and Voting

[Jennifer Clarke]

The statement below is being sent on behalf of the NAPPN Executive Board and the 2022 Annual Conference Local Organizing and Scientific Committees.

Dear NAPPN members,

The NAPPN board has received a number of emails from members expressing concerns about the location of the 2022 NAPPN Annual Conference in light of the ongoing voter suppression debate in Georgia. In response to these concerns the members of NAPPN Board, and the members of the 2022 NAPPN Annual Conference Local Organizing and Scientific Committees state that we strongly and unequivocally support all actions to facilitate and encourage free and fair access to voting, not only in Georgia but in every democratic election everywhere in the world. As such, the members of the organizing entities made the unanimous decision to include the option to support the democracy network Fairfight in Georgia ( https://fairfight.com/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__fairfight.com_&d=DwMGaQ&c=Cu5g146wZdoqVuKpTNsYHeFX_rg6kWhlkLF8Eft-wwo&r=MXeVotDn-TxMVs8GtvAmsw&m=LwlK3MicNpYFtvJX_iA-rNS0xndP7EpIHm0MiFNqo3M&s=UngQEYbRZT8zl4nh8GOCe1X-NBtwOus_hRDJhfwudYY&e=> ) during the registration process for the conference. Fairfight promotes fair elections in Georgia and around the country, encourages voter participation in elections, and educates voters about elections and their voting rights.

Unfortunately, voter restriction became a trend that is unfolding across all of the US with 47 states considering or passing new laws to make voting harder (see https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/state-voting-bills-tracker-2021<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.brennancenter.org_our-2Dwork_research-2Dreports_state-2Dvoting-2Dbills-2Dtracker-2D2021&d=DwMFaQ&c=Cu5g146wZdoqVuKpTNsYHeFX_rg6kWhlkLF8Eft-wwo&r=MXeVotDn-TxMVs8GtvAmsw&m=JNGfNMd9v_rmKUHosoP3R4jRAwZ25FP3buczkZ5s9-c&s=CdLcbEo7isHqAE-Ls74Ea-qStcep3_cyrXQWHGzXpL0&e=> ). Our effort is summarized in two interviews of Georgia’s Stacey Abrams, founder of FairFight, from April 8th 2021 (https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-stacey-abrams-georgia-voting-rights-elections-5411ef8b554c00b0351d36b1ec00c405 and https://www.thewrap.com/stacey-abrams-pleads-in-new-video-dont-boycott-georgia-video/<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.thewrap.com_stacey-2Dabrams-2Dpleads-2Din-2Dnew-2Dvideo-2Ddont-2Dboycott-2Dgeorgia-2Dvideo&d=DwMFaQ&c=Cu5g146wZdoqVuKpTNsYHeFX_rg6kWhlkLF8Eft-wwo&r=MXeVotDn-TxMVs8GtvAmsw&m=JNGfNMd9v_rmKUHosoP3R4jRAwZ25FP3buczkZ5s9-c&s=LhgKOGtIyMyJX5pkKCetQp_mTJu_SUQske3Jsjt9qmM&e=>). Ms. Abrams states that:

“I understand the impulse of boycotting, but I also understand that boycotts operate differently depending on your targets and depending on your timeline. I do not believe that a boycott at this moment is beneficial to the victims of these bills.”

As such, the members of the three organizing entities support the expert opinion of Georgia’s voter rights activist Stacy Abrams, and believe that supporting the work of democratic networks is a proactive and progressive element of change. We believe that providing conference registrants with the option to support Fairfight gives NAPPN members and conference attendees an avenue to turn their individual concerns into supporting action for democracy.

All donations will be sent collectively to Fairfight with a cover letter including a list of all named donors (donors will have the option to remain anonymous). We will also state in this letter that donations reflect the personal decision of the donors to support a democratic action and do not reflect the opinion of any institution a donor is affiliated with.



[signature_933226928]
Jennifer L. Clarke, Ph.D.
Professor and Director<https://bigdata.unl.edu/>
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Food Science and Technology; Statistics
4024722512<tel:4024722512>

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