The federal holiday we call Presidents' Day, celebrated this year on February 19, technically does not exist. It is officially George Washington's birthday and has been a federal holiday since 1879, although in 1971 it was moved to the third Monday in February so Americans could enjoy a three-day weekend in his honor.
Presidents' Day also has nothing to do with Abraham Lincoln or the other two presidents born in February: Ronald Reagan and William Henry Harrison. The true meaning of this holiday—honoring the legacy of the nation's first president—seems to have been forgotten. Instead of big presidents, we're more likely to think of this as a three-day furniture and appliance sales event.
While Washington might have understood the need for a good sale (his bed at Mount Vernon was made of expensive wood and had mattresses stuffed with horsehair), he would surely agree that the holiday has lost its meaning in the 21st century.
If we simply use the day to swap out old mattresses for new ones, how about we also swap out what has become a mediocre vacation for what could be a meaningful holiday? Election day.
If there was ever a patriotic reason for a day off, it is to participate in democracy by voting in a local, state or federal election.
I remember reporting from a polling place in South Los Angeles on Election Day 2008. Less than half an hour before the polls closed, a young woman walked in with her father. She worked at a country club restaurant and had come to vote after a long day at work. I admired that he did not dismiss this last but profoundly important task of the day. Her bosses had let her leave early to vote. California and many other states require employers to give their workers paid time off to vote. But what about other workers who can't leave early? Wouldn't it be great if everyone had the day off to vote?
Today, it's easy to vote in California. Each registered voter receives a mail-in ballot, which can be mailed, delivered to a polling location, or placed in a ballot drop box. In Los Angeles County, voting centers are open 10 days before Election Day.
But voting rules are different and often more restrictive in other states. Although most US states and the District of Columbia also offer early voting, only seven states, plus California, allow all elections to be conducted entirely by mail. Another 15 states allow voting by mail in some elections. And only 28 states and the District of Columbia allow you to request an absentee ballot without an excuse.
For those who need to vote in person, it may be difficult to get to a polling place. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights found that 1,688 polling places in 13 states closed between 2012 and 2018, the most since the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013. Many states also enacted other restrictive rules that make it difficult to vote. It overwhelmingly affected black and Latino communities.
For workers and those with children and little time to do anything, a full day off to search for and go to the polls would probably be welcome. But making Election Day a holiday could also help those of us who have no barriers to casting a vote other than the sense of boredom and insignificance that some people feel about elections, as in the case of “my vote really It doesn't matter”.
I suspect Washington would have approved of replacing a holiday in his honor with one that actually honors the electorate. His farewell address focused on national unity and threats to the young nation, but he did urge Americans to do everything possible to protect their union, saying that “it is of infinite importance that you properly estimate the immense value of your union.” national for your collective and individual happiness.”
What better justification could there be for an official voting holiday?
