Details By Kaili Berg August 22, 2024
NATIVE VOTE 2024. On a rainy Thursday on August 15, Wisconsin Native Vote hosted a tailgate at American Family Field in Milwaukee, aiming to increase voter registration and turnout among Native communities for the upcoming November election.
As Major League Baseball teams Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers prepared to face off, the tailgate featured a color guard, a performance by the Smokey Town drum group, and speeches from prominent Native leaders, including Mark Denning (Oneida), Anne Eagan-Waukau (Menominee), and Shannon Holsey (Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican).
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The event also marked the first collaboration of its kind with the Milwaukee Brewers, who generously provided 1,000 game tickets to be distributed among Wisconsin’s tribal nations.
Holsey, president of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation, shared the story of Louis Leroy, a member of her tribe who played for the Boston Red Sox in the early 1900s, but was denied the right to vote in U.S. elections because he was Indigenous.
“We have a powerful voice,” Holsey said at the event. “When we stand together, we can influence decisions that impact our people, our land, and our future. Voting is one of the most important ways to make our voices heard.”
Leroy’s story served as a reminder of the relatively recent history of Native voting rights. Indigenous peoples were not granted U.S. citizenship until 1924, and it took even longer for many to gain full access to the ballot.
Holsey also stated that Native military veterans, who have served at higher rates than any other group of Americans, played a critical role in securing these rights. She reminded the…