Your Vote Counts

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO VOTE?
The decisions made by the government–whether it’s in Washington, DC, in California, or your city—will impact your life and your family. Vote and say what’s important to you and our communities.

POLITICIANS NOTICE WHO IS AND ISN’T VOTING.
Immigrants have the potential to be the deciding factor as new and swing voters – especially when one in nine people living in America is an immigrant. In 2000 there were 30 million voting age citizens who were Latino, Asian Pacific Islander American, & immigrant-naturalized citizens – over 15% of the electorate. In the 2000 elections, 5.4 million APIAs were eligible to vote and slightly more than 2 million actually voted.  VOTE to speak out on issues that affect the APIA & immigrant communities.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?
The government makes important decisions that impact almost every aspect of your life.
For example:

IMMIGRATION – WHO CAN VISIT, LIVE AND WORK IN THE U.S.?
An estimated 1.5 million APIA U.S. citizens & lawful permanent residents wait years, sometimes decades, to reunite with their families in the U.S. The number of families stuck in the visa backlogs increased by 59 % from 2002 to 2004. Roughly, 1.5 million undocumented immigrants from the APIA community live, work, & study in the U.S. and 1 out of 5 Korean Americans are undocumented.

HEALTH CARE – WHO CAN GET INSURANCE?  HOW MUCH IT WILL COST TO BUY PRESCRIPTION DRUGS?
Without health care coverage, it is difficult for most people to access necessary medical care and prescriptions drugs, and conditions may worsen significantly as a result. Nearly 45 million people, including more than 8 million children, in the U.S. had no health insurance in 2003, a 13 % increase since 2001. 18 % of APIAs, 33 % of immigrants and 52 % of Korean Americans do not have health care coverage.

VOTING RIGHTS – ENSURE THAT EVERYONE HAS EQUAL ACCESS TO THE POLLS.
U.S. citizens, who are unable to read and speak English very well, have the right to receive materials and assistance in their language in order to understand the issues and fully exercise their right to vote.  In Los Angeles County APIA make up 13% of the overall population, of which 43% are limited-English proficient (LEP). 72% of Korean Americans who are 25 years or older speak or read English “not well.”

Each Vote Sends a Message. VOTE June 6!  

For more information, contact Korean Resource Center at (323) 937-3718. Produced by the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (www.nakasec.org) and the Korean Resource Center (www.krcla.org).