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The Rev. Jesse Jackson spoke to UW Oshkosh students, faculty and staff, as well as members of the local community, about the importance of voting in Wisconsin.

When Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks in his familiar cadence, people listen.

And, while they are listening, he makes sure they speak, too.

“I will vote. Vote matters. Vote education. Vote healthcare. Vote jobs. Vote teachers. Vote to end war,” a University of Wisconsin Oshkosh audience of faculty, staff, students and community members repeated as Jackson commanded the podium at Reeve Memorial Union March 28.

Jackson, one of the most prominent civil rights, religious and political figures in the U.S., partnered with students from UW-Madison and UW-Milwaukee to travel around Wisconsin and encourage students to not only focus on voting but to preserve the ease of voting access in Wisconsin. The tour kicked off at UW Oshkosh with a few hundred UWO students, faculty and staff, as well as members of the local community.

UW Oshkosh Political Science Professor and American Democracy Project Chairman David Siemers  and a handful of local and state government leaders led off the event, keynoted by Jackson. UW Oshkosh student Marissa Reynolds, Rep. Gordon Hintz, Rep. Frederick Kessler and Rainbow Push’s National Field Director Bishop Tavis L. Grant spoke briefly before Jackson took the stage.

Jackson emphasized debt forgiveness, student voter rights and affordability of higher education. He focused on a student’s ability to register with a student ID and vote on campus in that same day — accomodations he warned are threatened by proposed legislation.

“Students deserve easy access to education,” Jackson said. “Young America, come alive. You have an opportunity to turn pain into passion and passion into voting. April 5 is the day of redemption and to have your voice heard.”

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cz10hSRwOEM

Jackson urged attendees to go out and vote given the impact of tuition increases, teacher layoffs and the proposed state Voter ID Bill, which, Hintz argued, would end same day registration with student identification and make absentee balloting more difficult for students to use.

“The issue became much bigger than the Budget Repair Bill,” Hintz said. “There was no attempt to neither negotiate nor compromise. This bill is aimed at shrinking who votes and why. I ask you to take a bigger role in Wisconsin’s future.”

Jackson spoke for about 25 minutes before boarding his tour bus and heading to UW Stevens Point and UW System universities in western Wisconsin.

Watch Rev. Jesse Jackson’s presentation on the American Democracy Project iTunes U.

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