“Fighting for Voting Rights” will be presented by Dr. Dianne Bystrom, a speaker with Humanities Nebraska, at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 26, at the Gretna Public Library, 736 South St. in Gretna. The event is made possible by Humanities Nebraska, the Nebraska Cultural Endowment, the Gretna Public Library and the Three Rivers Library System as part of the Humanities Nebraska Speakers Bureau.

Bystrom is director emerita of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University, according to a library press release. She led the center for 22 years before retiring in August 2018.

At Iowa State, she taught courses on women and politics, political campaigns, and women and leadership. She is also communications director for the League of Women Voters of Nebraska. She is the co-author of “Gender and Politics: Changing the Face of Civic Life,” published in July, and has contributed to 26 other books, including “Democracy Disrupted: Communication in the Volatile 2020 Presidential Election.” She has also written magazine articles on women and politics, young voters, and the Iowa Caucus.

Her talk, “Fighting for Voting Rights,” describes how voting rights in the United States have been expanded and restricted over time through the 15th, 19th, and 26th Amendments, which expanded voting rights to African American men, women, and 18- to 20-year-olds; the Voting Rights Act of 1965; and recent actions by the Supreme Court, Congress, and state legislatures. It includes statistics on who voted in recent elections by age, gender, and race/ethnicity, as well as information on how to register and educate yourself about voting.

“Dr. Dianne Bystrom’s presentation in the Humanities Nebraska catalog caught my eye because it emphasizes that the fight for voting rights is an ongoing battle at the legislative level,” youth librarian Heba Thiele said in a message to the Times. “I think people forget that we change our laws every day and the electoral process as it is now is not as it always was – or as it always needs to be.”

“The program is open to all ages, but I chose to book it as a youth librarian because voting has become more important than ever and I want to empower young and new voters,” she continued. “There is some concern about our governance and I believe voters (and potential voters) should feel safe and informed.

“Dr. Bystrom can also explain the early voting process in Nebraska. This is an important tool for us because many people cannot vote on Election Day.”

“Fighting for Voting Rights” is one of approximately 300 programs offered by the Humanities Nebraska Speakers Bureau. The more than 165 available speakers include renowned scholars, writers, musicians, storytellers and folklorists on topics ranging from pioneer heritage to ethics and law to international and multicultural issues, making it the largest humanities speakers bureau in the country.

Speakers are available to any nonprofit organization in Nebraska. Each program lasts 30 minutes to one hour, plus a question-and-answer session. The most common users of the HN Speakers Bureau are elementary and secondary schools, colleges and universities, libraries, museums and historical societies, agencies serving the elderly, rural organizations, churches, arts organizations, and ethnic organizations.

Humanities Nebraska sponsors the largest Speakers Bureau program in the United States, according to the National Endowment for the Humanities.

For more information on available speakers and guidelines for booking them, visit humanitiesnebraska.org (Speakers section) or contact Humanities Nebraska at 215 Centennial Mall South, Suite 330, Lincoln, NE 68508, phone 402-474-2131, fax 402-474-4852, or email: [email protected].