Avoice: African American Voices in Congress

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Avoice™ is the first and most comprehensive virtual library on African-American political and legislative contributions to America’s democracy. The Avoice Web site is a collection of key historical materials, some already in the public domain and others never before published. Historical content is regularly added to Avoice in the form of exhibits, audio, video, and copies of original documents related to African American legislators from the 1800s to the present. The site is a comprehensive and qualitative resource for teachers, scholars, students and people interested in American legislative history.

Contents

[edit] Background

[edit] Objectives

The objectives for this site include enabling African Americans to become more familiar with the political issues of the past as a basis for understanding the political and legislative reality they face today. The site also aims to encourage young people to pursue careers in government based on the shining examples of previous leaders.

[edit] Creation

The Avoice project was developed by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation [1] (CBCF) to capture the history of the participation and contribution of African Americans in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.

[edit] Partners

The project was made possible by the generous financial support provided by Dell Inc. The digitization and Web architecture for this project was provided by the University of Texas at Austin. Its content partner is the Moorland Spingarn Research Center-Manuscripts Division at Howard University, which is the official repository of the CBC Archives.

[edit] Quick facts

[edit] Current exhibits

All Avoice online exhibits include an introduction to the issue, a history of CBC member involvement in said issue, a timeline of important dates, information on public advocacy of the issues, and photo and document galleries pertaining to the issue.

[edit] Origins of the CBC

Since its foundation in 1971, members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) have introduced and sponsored legislation on a range of issues including voting rights, employment, education, health care, and foreign policy. By making known their legislative agenda, CBC members have been able to advance African-American political interests in the U.S. for over thirty-five years.

[edit] The Voting Rights Act

Members of the CBC have introduced and co-sponsored legislation ensuring that all Americans have the right to vote. As a result of the CBC’s continuous efforts to protect the rights of underrepresented people, amendments and reauthorization of various provisions of the Voting Rights Act have been made in 1970, 1975, 1982, and 2006.

[edit] Martin Luther King Jr. holiday

The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) led the charge for the passage of a federal observation of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday, honoring his contribution to the United States. Representative John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) first introduced legislation only four days after King was assassinated.

[edit] Anti-apartheid

The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) played a major role in the dismantling of the apartheid system in South Africa. Representative Ronald V. Dellums (D-CA) introduced the CBC's first bill concerning apartheid in 1972. Over the next 14 years, CBC members sponsored more than 15 bills concerning apartheid. Members urged the United States government to withdraw financial support from the South African government. The CBC also encouraged American universities and corporations to divest from doing business with South Africa.

[edit] Women of the CBC

African American Congresswomen have played a major role on a broad range of domestic and international issues including Civil Rights, Voting Rights, Education, Healthcare, Homeland Security and the current engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan. In celebration of Women’s History Month, The Congressional Black Caucus’ Virtual Library Project presents an exhibit highlighting the important role that African American women have played in the advancement of healthcare.

[edit] Upcoming exhibits

Plans have been made for an exhibit on environmental justice to be opened in the fall of 2008.

[edit] Special features

Avoice online includes several features exclusive to the site including interviews with the surviving founding members of the CBC, webcasts, audio, video, pictures, and links to more information.

[edit] References

[edit] External links