Johnson C. Smith University News August 12, 2017 SGA President advocates before state lawmakers Student Government Association President D'Andre Carter '18 traveled with fellow student leaders to the state capital on August 4, 2017 to meet with lawmakers to voice concerns about policies that impact their campuses. Carter and other minority millennials spoke on HBCU Lobby Day about a variety of issues, including voting access and funding for students at historically Black institutions. "It was an eye-opening experience," Carter said. The nonpartisan group Common Cause NC, which held its first think tank several years ago at JCSU, invited Carter as a member of the HBCU Student Action Alliance, a student-led network rooted in North Carolina's 10 historically black colleges and universities. The group works to hold power accountable at every level. Carter, who is majoring in political science and communication arts, is particularly concerned with voter ID restrictions and residency laws that suppress the student vote. He recently oversaw a voter forum in Biddle Memorial Hall and is organizing another forum for campus with Common Cause and the Hip Hop Caucus, where he hopes to get students speaking out about the needs and issues in their districts to city and state representatives. More voter registration drives are planned in time for Charlotte's September 12 city council primary and November 7 general election. "A lot of our students are coming in as freshman and we want to show them they have power," Carter said. "Charlotte is one of biggest cities in North Carolina and we have chance to have a big voice in the state. This goes beyond JCSU, to our brother and sister schools across the state. We need to make sure that not just our voices are heard, but theirs are too." SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta, GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org/ sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org%3cmailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org>> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/