The CBC "Message to America" is distributed nationwide to the American Urban Radio Network’s (AURN) affiliate stations.

WHO:        U.S. Congressman Al Green (D-TX)

WHEN:      Saturday, April 22, 2006; 12:06 p.m. EST

WHERE:   American Urban Radio Network Affiliate Stations

"Hello Friends, this is Congressman Al Green of Texas with this week’s CBC Message to America.

"Today, the citizens of New Orleans will walk into the polling booths for the first time since Hurricane Katrina made landfall almost 8 months ago.

"Since that time there have been over 1,300 confirmed deaths from the storm, tens of thousands of Katrina survivors are still suffering, and over 2,000 people are still missing.

"The devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before: up to 1 million families were displaced; half a million people lost their jobs; and over half a million residents were displaced from the Louisiana Gulf Coast alone.

"Unfortunately the tragedy continues to this day, because at least 345,000 of displaced Louisianans now live outside their state, less than one-third of New Orleans’ 460,000 residents have returned and the population of the entire state of Louisiana has been estimated to have been reduced by 8 percent since Katrina – 4.1 million today, compared to 4.5 million pre-Katrina.

"The disruption in the size and demographic composition of Louisiana, particularly the city of New Orleans, endangers fair and equal access to the ballot. This is why the members of the Congressional Black Caucus, along with our friends and allies in organizations like the NAACP, fought to have today’s elections in New Orleans postponed.

"To hold elections before Louisiana devised a plan for implementing effective absentee ballot measures, as well as satellite voting from states with large concentrations of displaced voters, will likely disenfranchise tens of thousands of voters.

"If we can spend hundreds of billions to bring democracy to Iraq, where Iraqi nationals outside Iraq can vote in Iraqi elections from 15 countries around the world, then surely we can spend hundreds of thousands to provide American citizens who found refuge in Houston, and other cities across our country, satellite voting locations outside of Louisiana within the United States of America.

"The citizens of Louisiana have been through enough. They have suffered through the worst natural disaster in U.S. history, they have been forced to abandon their homes, and they have been victimized by an ineffective response from this Administration.

"We should not compound their struggles by taking away their hard earned right to vote. I urge all who do have the ability to vote today to send a strong message to all those who place too little value on this sacred American right. Please go out and vote for a better New Orleans and for a better America.

"This is Congressman Al Green with the CBC Message to America. Thank you for listening."