People of faith, and those guided by the common good, know that together, we will build a future where everyone thrives. As Pope Francis says, “The only future worth building includes everyone.” If we are to build a future where everyone can thrive—no exceptions—we must be informed, engaged, and committed voters this election year. Will you join us?
NETWORK’s 2024 nonpartisan voter engagement and empowerment campaign, Vote Our Future, gives justice-seekers the resources, training, and messaging needed to take action for social justice and protect the freedoms essential to a multiracial, multi-faith democracy this election year, and beyond.
EQUALLY SACRED ISSUES
A guiding document of the Vote Our Future campaign, our Equally Sacred Checklist supports justice-seekers’ work to build thriving communities in the 2024 elections, and beyond, as participants in public life journeying toward Beloved Community.
The Equally Sacred Checklist does not reflect the entirety of NETWORK’s policy issues. Rather, the Checklist focuses on six broad categories of issues: health care, economic justice, climate justice, community harm (violence), democracy, and immigration. These issues, which have been part of NETWORK’s policy platform for over 50 years, reflect the current challenges that people struggle with in their everyday lives. They are also the foundation of our current Build Anew public policy agenda.
Pope Francis tells us that Catholics, and people of goodwill, are called to be multi-issue voters concerned with the multiple matters of justice that affect flourishing lives.
Get the Equally Sacred Issues Checklist
Whether we are college students or retirees, faith-based or secular, or from the Midwest or East Coast, most of us agree that certain freedoms are vital to a thriving democracy. The Equally Sacred Checklist helps us research elections through the lens of equally sacred issues that encompass the freedoms needed for a multiracial, multi-faith, inclusive democracy. An overview of the Equally Sacred Checklist appears below. You can get the English or Spanish version of the Equally Sacred Checklist here.
WHEN WE VOTE OUR FUTURE, WE PROTECT THE FREEDOM TO...
Be
Healthy
The Catholic Church affirms that food and health care are not privileges reserved for the wealthy, but universal rights.
Will you vote for candidates who commit to protect and expand affordable health care for all and end the injustice of medical debt, reduce the cost of prescription medicines so patients can afford lifesaving care, and end the Black maternal health crisis by investing in the expansion of critical programs to support the lives of parents and babies?
Live on a Healthy Planet
Care for our common home is a requirement of the Catholic faith.
Will you vote for candidates who will address the climate crisis, invest in a rapid transition to renewable energy, end policies that benefit fossil fuel corporations (such as tax subsidies and approval of pipelines), and address pollution and toxic dumping that disproportionately affect Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, and ensure clean air and water for all?
Participate in Democracy
Catholic teaching affirms that people have a right and a responsibility to participate in our shared political processes.
Will you vote for candidates who refuse to use violent language or threats of violence against other candidates or groups of people, ensure all eligible voters have access to voting (and restore voting for formerly incarcerated people), and will limit the power of the wealthy to manipulate our democracy through unlimited dark money and gerrymandering?
Care for Ourselves & Our Families
Catholic teaching promotes the dignity of work, the rights of workers, and an economy that places people over profit.
Will you vote for candidates who will reduce costs for families with policies like an expanded Child Tax Credit, paid leave, and childcare funding; support a living wage and the right to join a union; make the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes; support a billionaire tax; and support future generations by expanding training programs and free college?
Be Free
From Harm
The Catholic Church insists upon every person’s intrinsic worth, dignity, and right to live in safety—with no exceptions.
Will you vote for candidates who support common sense gun control, including banning the use of AR-15s and other weapons of war, so our children and communities can live safely? And will protect the rights of marginalized communities including Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities as well as LGBTQ+ people?
Live in a Welcoming Country
The Catholic Church affirms that we all have a right to migrate to seek a safe and good life for ourselves and our families.
Will you vote for candidates who support the right to asylum and paths to citizenship, and prioritize integration? And, promote inclusive policies that support southern border communities rather than militarization?
Multi-issue voters will not let money, dog whistles, and other threats to our democracy keep us from voting.
Multi-issue voters know that voting can bring the social justice our communities need, so they make a plan to vote and mobilize friends and family to vote, too. And because we recognize that all justice issues are equally sacred, and that no single issue is more important than any other, we research and make choices that will help our communities thrive.
A Pope Francis Voter recognizes that all social justice issues are equally sacred, but they also determine how they'll vote, make a voting team so friends and family have a plan, too, and do a fair amount of research and discernment.
Just as you may make travel plans, schedule dentist appointments, and plan for religious holidays--you should plan for a successful voting season.
