To the Editor:

[Editor’s note: The following was presented by Yvonne Rose on behalf of the Alpha Kappa Sorority to the Southampton County Board of Supervisors during its Monday meeting.]

• Voting Rights – Currently these are the issues regarding Voting Rights: 1) The use of Voter Identification laws, 2) Challenges to early voting, and 3) Cutting funding of Civil Rights, which includes IDEA, (Individuals and Disabilities Education Act) and Title EX (Statute for gender equity in education).

The more than 290,000 women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., will work in solidarity for the protection of Civil Rights and the Voting Rights Act to its’ fiill restoration for African-American people.

Restoration of voting rights is a very important issue to sorority members who reside in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States of America.

• Education – Vigorous debate has been held for many years regarding proficiency and growth in the public school system. Many politician advocates are interested in restructuring America’s public schools into private based charter schools who will use educational vouchers.

This would impact children throughout the country within rural and urban communities, specifically for children living in poverty.

Studies show that many school choice programs do not provide enough funding to low-income families to provide for the full cost of private school tuition.

The more than 290,000 women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. believe education is the passport to wealthy and healthy families and will work to support a strong and equitable public education system in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States of America in the 21st century.

• Health Care – Women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. believe in the promotion and protection of healthcare. Many Americans are in poor health and do not receive the best medical care. While these problems affect people of all groups and walks of life, the challenges are especially acute for the African-American community. Research studies and reports have documented that the underserved are in poorer health, experienee problems accessing care, are more likely to be uninsured, and often receive lower quality health care than other Americans.

These differences may be due to unequal income, education, and insurance coverage. Given the changing demographies in this nation, an increasing number of Americans find themselves at risk of disease and not getting good healthcare. The more than 290,000 women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., support a strong and equitable healthcare system for the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States of America.

The women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. thank the Southampton County Board of Supervisors for listening to our concerns.

Yvonne Rose
Southampton County