A Busy Day for Politically Minded

Sunday will be a busy day for both the Fairfax County Republican Committee (FCRC) and the Democratic Women of Clifton (DWC). The events these groups have planned hold promise to be informative, useful, and interesting.

Have you ever wondered about the functions and management of your precinct? Have you considered becoming a poll watcher? If you want to volunteer or simply to learn more, then the FCRC class, which will be offered from 7 to 9:30 p.m., will catch your attention. Topics the speakers will discuss include recruiting volunteers, communicating effectively and voter identification. The organization of precincts will be explained, as well as procedures at the polls on Election Day.

This highly practical workshop has been organized by Matt Ames, the Fairfax County Republican Committee’s vice chairman of Operations. It will be held at the FCRC headquarters, which is located nearby at 4246 Chain Bridge Road, Fairfax, VA 22030. If you want to register, call (703) 766-4467 or send an e-mail to Darius Barakat, the deputy director of Operations (dbarakat101@gmail.com).  Barakat urges everyone to attend in order to learn how “to recruit volunteers, conduct voter contact activities and build an election day turnout organization in support of Republican candidates.”

Because March is Women’s History Month, the monthly meeting of the DWC will honor the suffragists who fought so hard for the right to vote. Many of these brave women were imprisoned at Lorton, which has been transformed into the Occoquan Workhouse, an inspiring center for art. In recognition of their achievement, a monument will soon be dedicated at the Occoquan Regional Park.

Kathleen Pablo, a member of the Turning Point Suffragist Memorial Committee, will give a gripping presentation about some of the principal suffragists and their protracted, stirring battle to secure voting rights for themselves, their daughters and their granddaughters. These courageous pioneers would be shocked at the voter apathy today and at the declining percentage of eligible voters who actually vote.

Just for fun, the meeting will feature a costume contest. Dress in blue like the suffragists did, and you may win a prize! The DWC meeting will take place at the Clifton Community Hall, 12641 Chapel Road, Clifton, from 3 to 5 p.m. Everyone is invited to attend and to bring a friend, too.