Ballot initiatives are rare for our state, and this year Vermonters have the chance to vote for two of them.
The one proposal many voters are not familiar with — and in fact are often surprised by — is Prop 2, to amend Article 1 of the Vermont Constitution to abolish slavery without exception.
Vermont Interfaith Action and the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance have been collaborating on a campaign to pass Prop 2 for over a year now. The partnership is a natural one for both parties. People of faith and goodwill, who comprise Vermont Interfaith Action, are energetic about taking a moral stand against the most reprehensible of our historic institutions — slavery. The African Americans, especially American Descendants of Slavery, who comprise the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance, have a personal interest as well in unambiguously ending a system that directly affected their forebears and has brought adverse effects to succeeding generations — including the one today.
