Vote with Heart

Join the Movement! Vote With Heart!

What are you doing right...this…second? If your answer is logging onto www.votewithheart.com andjoining 3E Love’s campaign to empower Americans who are passionate about disability rights, then…kudos! It will only take a minute of your time to pledge to #VoteWithHeart and unite with a coalition of voices who are determined to create positive change for the disability community.

The mission of this nonpartisan effort is to enforce equal rights for people of all abilities. For your support of this important crusade, you will receive be mailed a special welcome packet complete with a complimentary Vote With Heart sticker.

There’s even a t-shirt.

Why Should the Disability Community Vote With Heart?

For years, 3E Love's international symbol of acceptance (the wheelchair heart) has graced everything from t-shirts, to social media pages, to tattoos across the nation. Now that the countdown to the election is on, 3E Love Founder Stevie Hopkins is taking disability awareness to a new level with the Vote With Heart project.

More than 50 million strong in the United States, people with disabilities are the largest minority group. Vote With Heart seeks to mobilize these citizens to make a real difference in Washington.

“Almost none of our elected officials have an official policy or platform regarding people with disabilities,” said Hopkins. “It’s time that that changes.”

Hopkins encourages the community to:

• Log on to www.votewithheart.com and pledge to #VoteWithHeart.
• Share why you are voting with heart to your social network, using hashtags #VoteWithHeart and #3ELove.
• Replace your Facebook profile image with “Vote” image on 3E Love’s Facebook page.
• Consider supporting the cause with the purchase of a Vote With Heart T-shirt. The Vote With Heart campaign is completely funded by 3E Love and your support will help to defray the costs.

“Vote With Heart is a community of Americans who believe that the dream of our founding fathers, that all are created equal, extends to people of all abilities,” said Hopkins. “Our goal is to raise awareness that people with disabilities are voters, and they influence others who vote. Nearly half of Americans have a disabled person in their immediate family. Showing that we care, and that we vote, is the most important message we can send to Washington.”

This is just the beginning. While citizens are strongly encouraged to take to the polls on November 8, the Vote With Heart campaign will only grow stronger once our new president takes office.

According to Hopkins, “Our goal is to draw attention and encourage members of the Senate and Representatives in Congress to publish an official platform statement explaining how they intend to help improve lives of people with disabilities and those who care for them.”

In the Words of 3E Love’s Stevie Hopkins

Hello friends of 3E Love,

I am writing to invite you to participate in a brand new project that we have started here at 3E Love LLC! Since starting the company with my sister Annie in 2007, we have reached over 50,000 in 35 countries with our wheelchair heart symbol. Millions more have seen it and read about our social message of acceptance online. For the past two years, I've been wanting to do something new and exciting with 3E Love, something more than spreading the message through apparel and merchandise and social media posts. Starting conversations is great and an important part of change, but I've just wanted more!

Although I'm not physically active in the disability rights movements at events and rallies, I've always focused behind-the-scenes on advocacy, education and policy, all of which being cornerstones of the 3E Love mission.

Did you know...

• More than 50 million Americans have a disability!
• Over 75% of adults with disabilities report being unemployed or underemployed!
• Almost 30% of people with disabilities live in poverty!
• The average person with a disability earns $10,092 less than a person without a disability.
• More than 30 states still institutionalize people with disabilities instead of supporting them in their communities. Therefore 20% of the disabled population are currently institutionalized.

That's just a few disgusting statistics. I could go on for days with statistics and personal stories from 3E Lovers of inequity and injustice in America for people with disabilities.

We can't just stand by idly anymore. No matter who you are, it is your freedom as a citizen to have your voice heard and to influence legislation and enforce our rights as Americans. I believe it is more than a right and more than a freedom that you can exercise, it is an obligation. We cannot complain about the nature of our world or our status in life if we don't exercise our given rights in our democracy.

So what can you do? There are so many things that you can do on a local level as well as a national level... I created Vote With Heart with the idea that by creating a coalition of citizens who care about disability rights and quality of life, that we can organize electronically to have our voices heard and to educate each other on important issues that may never be brought to light.

With that, I cordially invite you to check out Vote With Heart and become a member! It only takes a few minutes and we have some cool content for you to check out already! If you sign up before Election Day you will receiving a welcome kit with a sticker pack.

I have spent a few months of time and a lot of our resources to make this happen, so I would really appreciate your support in checking it out!  I'm really excited for the future and what can be done with a large coalition. The website and all marketing is funded 100% by orders at 3E Love, so if you want to chip in and help out, please grab a shirt or some buttons and tell some friends! We even have a special Vote section of our store with great stuff to hand out and educate others.

Thank you so much and don't forget to vote on November 8th!

Much 3E Love,
Stevie Hopkins

For more information, visit www.votewithheart.com and www.facebook.com/3elove.

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