Today, a coalition of 35 Arizona groups and organizations, led by Indivisible Arizona, sent a letter to Senator Kelly and Senator Sinema expressing support for D.C. Statehood, and calling on them to co-sponsor the Washington, D.C. Admission Act (S. 51):
“As one of the youngest states before Alaska and Hawaii, Arizonans know the privilege that comes with statehood — specifically having a seat at the table in Congress. Indivisibles and groups across Arizona are using that very privilege to call on Senator Sinema and Senator Kelly to put an end to the centuries-long political tokenization of D.C. voters,” said Liz Haskell from Yuma County Indivisible. “It’s past time the over 700,000 residents of Washington, D.C. — who contribute more federal tax dollars than 22 other states — receive representation for their taxation. If Senator Kelly and Senator Sinema are committed to bettering the lives of all Americans, they must cosponsor and pass S. 51, the D.C. statehood bill, immediately.”
“The fate of D.C. residents — a city with a plurality of Black voters — has been determined by partisan politics and is part of a centuries-long push to suppress the Black vote. My ancestors fought for the right to vote, and we’re still fighting disenfranchisement across the country — from Georgia to here in Arizona,” said Jan Counts from Indivisible Tucson Action Alliance. “Beneath fallacious arguments from lawmakers and anti-statehood advocates is the drive to undermine the power of the Black vote. Lawmakers must put the rights of the over 700,000 people who pay taxes, upkeep the country’s capital, and show up to protect them against violent white supremacists ahead of their own political interests. Indivisibles in Arizona will continue speaking up for the people living in D.C. until Senator Kelly and Senator Sinema champion S. 51 and pass D.C. statehood once and for all.”