Editorial: noncitizens voting in lausd elections? Bad idea

Latimes

Editorial: noncitizens voting in lausd elections? Bad idea"


Play all audios:

Loading...

In what’s becoming a mini-trend of sorts, the Los Angeles Unified School District is considering the question of whether to let noncitizens with children in the schools vote in school board


elections. A resolution up for debate Nov. 5 would establish a working committee to examine the issues around bringing such a proposal before voters. The board could save itself time and


trouble by doing the right thing and killing the resolution. Though the district should encourage the involvement of parents no matter what their immigration status is, the privilege of


voting is one that rightly belongs to citizens. L.A. Unified is following in the footsteps of San Francisco, which started allowing noncitizen parents of its students to vote in 2018. It


didn’t work as planned; fewer than 50 people registered. But the practicalities aren’t what matter here. We’ve all heard about the checks and balances inherent in a democratic way of


government. The ultimate check on government power – exercised by too few people – is the one exerted by the voters who can throw the rascals out if they choose. That oversight rightly


belongs to those who are tied to the government in a formal and binding way by citizenship. Supporters of expanding the vote correctly point out that parents have a special stake in schools,


regardless of their official status. (This resolution would explore voting privileges for noncitizen grandparents as well.) But there are many ways for noncitizens to participate in their


children’s schooling. They can join and lead the PTA and other parent organizations, serve on advisory committees and sign up with community advocacy groups. And noncitizens have a big


interest in many other aspects of government than schools. The services provided and regulations enacted around healthcare, the environment, transportation and public safety all have direct


impacts on the people living here, citizens and otherwise. In fact, the philosophy behind the L.A. Unified resolution represents a troubling way of viewing voter participation. Voting rights


shouldn’t be extended based on who is most directly affected by a particular issue. Voting on health coverage isn’t extended to sick noncitizens; voting on gas taxes isn’t extended to


noncitizens with cars. We all have a stake together in how government policy affects people, and ways of influencing that policy to the good. But noncitizens have joined the nation on the


understanding that voting is not one of the privileges extended to them; that comes with taking an oath of allegiance when immigrants are naturalized. The right way to extend the vote to


noncitizens is to encourage those here legally to work toward citizenship and to provide a path to citizenship for the undocumented. That would strengthen the state and the nation with a


more robust roster of citizen voters. MORE TO READ


Trending News

Cars and driving: what's new in france in 2025

FROM AI SPEED CAMERAS TO LOW-EMISSION ZONES, WE LOOK AT THE CHANGES SET TO TRANSFORM FRENCH ROADS AND DRIVING REGULATION...

9/11 15th anniversary news, research and analysis - the conversation

* Thomas Terndrup Professor of Emergency Medicine, The Ohio State University * Lynne B. Sagalyn Earle W. Kazis and Benja...

Passengers on french trains can be paid to carry parcels

TRAVELLERS CAN EARN UP TO €20 VIA AN ECO-FRIENDLY IDEA FROM A NEW START-UP DO YOU RECEIVE THE CONNEXION'S FREE WEEK...

Thousands waiting for plane refunds

OMBUDSMAN RECEIVES 10,000 COMPLAINTS FROM PASSENGERS - AND ONLY 12 CASES HAVE BEEN RESOLVED SO FAR. MORE than 10,000 peo...

"we had a walk down the thames" - shaun edwards reveals fresh talks with england - ruck

FRANCE DEFENCE COACH SHAUN EDWARDS HAS REVEALED HE TALKED TO ENGLAND BEFORE SIGNING HIS LATEST CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH F...

Latests News

Editorial: noncitizens voting in lausd elections? Bad idea

In what’s becoming a mini-trend of sorts, the Los Angeles Unified School District is considering the question of whether...

Oncostatin m – a new target in ibd?

Access through your institution Buy or subscribe Initially, the authors assessed cytokine mRNA expression in biopsies fr...

See jennifer lopez’s wedding band, plus similar ones to shop online

 Page Six may be compensated and/or receive an affiliate commission if you buy through our links. EXPLORE MORE Jennifer ...

Cbse board exams 2023: loc data correction window to open today

CBSE BOARD EXAMS 2023: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Tuesday announced that the board will activate...

Conversation reveals bank official was money matters agent

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recorded a senior Bank of India official’s telephonic conversation, which ...

Top