About Us
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Our Local League (LWVMA)
League Mission, Objectives, and Principles
(Courtesy of the League of Women Voters and LWVNJ)
What Is the League of Women Voters?
- The League is a multi-issue organization whose mission is to encourage the active participation of citizens in government and to influence public policy through education and advocacy.
- There are state and local Leagues in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Hong Kong,in addition to the hundreds of local Leagues nationwide. The League of Women Voters of the United States and the League of Women Voters Education Fund operate at the national level with grassroots support from state and local Leagues.
What Does the League Do?
- Empowers American citizens to have a voice in government; brings about constructive change; and builds grassroots citizen action
- Registers thousands to vote...defends voting rights...opens government to citizens...protects our environment...takes action for privacy in reproductive choice...supports violence prevention...and trains tomorrow's civic leaders
What Is Its History?
- The League of Women Voters was founded by Carrie Chapman Catt in 1920 during the convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. The convention was held just six months before the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, giving women the right to vote after a 57-year struggle.
- The League began as a "mighty political experiment" designed to help 20 million women carry out their new responsibilities as voters. It encouraged them to use their new power to participate in shaping public policy. From the beginning, the League was an activist, grassroots organization whose leaders believed that citizens should play a critical role in advocacy.
Does the League Support Political Parties or Candidates?
- No, never. The League is political, but strictly nonpartisan. It neither supports nor opposes candidates for office at any level of government. At the same time, the League is wholeheartedly political - working to influence public policy through education and advocacy. It is the original grassroots citizen network, directed by the consensus of its members across the country.
Does the League Take Positions on Issues?
- Yes. Our grassroots membership decides the issues and the positions the League will advocate. Over time, the League’s legislative priorities change to reflect the needs of society and critical issues of concern. The organization remains true to its basic purpose: to make democracy work for all citizens.
Read More about League Positions:
LWVMA...
- Presents educational forums for the general public
- Studies and takes action on local issues
- Sponsors and moderates local candidate forums
- Registers voters
- Observes local government meetings, and
- Participates in League consensus on critical issues that affect every one of us.
In 1988, LWVMA and the Coalition for Burlington County Women collaborated on a child care booklet as a joint public service venture.
The League's Web-based Child Care Directory, based on a survey of centers conducted in the summer of 1996, was the first of its kind.
Current child care resource and referral information for Burlington County is compiled by the Burlington County Community Action Program.
Your local Moorestown Area League has studied and taken action on the following positions. These positions are arrived at by consensus among our members at the annual Program Planning meeting.
- Support expanded use of Moorestown school facilities and more adult and community focused programs. Expanded use of school facilities should provide space for community sponsored programs, if needed. The expanded programs should be supplementary and complementary to existing community programs. The Board of Education should consider community needs in addition to the public education program in the formation of new building plans.
- Support for school age child care in Moorestown, provided by the Board of Education, preferably in the school which the child attends. Support for care which is affordable, self-supporting, well supervised and monitored by an advisory board.
- Support the need for more diverse housing in Moorestown through support of appropriate governmental policies and community education.
- Support adequate school facilities in Moorestown.
- Support township policies which promote planning for the environment of Moorestown.
- Encourage the clustering of dwellings in units in addition to single family houses on individual lots, given specific conditions.
- Support historic/scenic preservation.
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
Our Objectives
- To establish positions on public policy through member participation and agreement.
- To take concerted action that secures public policies consistent with League positions.
- To enhance citizen participation in federal, state and local government decisions.
- To increase citizen participation in the election process.
League Principles
The League of Women Voters believes in representative government and in the individual liberties established in the Constitution of the United States.
The League of Women Voters believes that democratic government depends upon the informed and active participation of its citizens and requires that governmental bodies protect the citizen’s right to know by giving adequate notice of proposed actions, holding open meetings and making public records accessible.
The League of Women Voters believes that every citizen should be protected in the right to vote; that every person should have access to free public education that provides equal opportunity for all; and that no person or group should suffer legal, economic or administrative discrimination.
The League of Women Voters believes that responsible government should be responsive to the will of the people; that government should maintain an equitable and flexible system of taxation, promote the conservation and development of natural resources in the public interest, share in the solution of economic and social problems that affect the general welfare, promote a sound economy and adopt domestic policies that facilitate the solution of international problems.
The League of Women Voters believes that cooperation with other nations is essential in the search for solutions to world problems and that development of international organizations and international law is imperative in the promotion of world peace.
League of Women Voters of the Moorestown Area,
P. O. Box 174,
Moorestown, NJ 08057
856-234-6608 (voice mail)
contact@lwvmoorestown.org Email now
www.lwvmoorestown.org Home
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Copyright © League of Women Voters 2005. All Rights Reserved. Last updated: December 1, 2005
