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Washington, DC’s TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION License Plates Hit a Milestone
With More Than 1 Million Plates Issued, DC Residents Continue Their Drive Toward Democracy
For more information contact: James Jones, Communications Director
202.462.6000 x12 office / 202.557.4864 mobile / jjones@dcvote.org
March 21, 2006
Washington, DC – More than 1 million of DC’s well-known ‘TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION’ license plates have been issued by the DC Department of Motor Vehicles, according to a report requested by DC Vote from the DMV this month. The plates were first introduced by Mayor Anthony Williams and the DC Department of Motor Vehicles on November 4, 2000.
DC Vote spent many long hours working with Mayor Williams, the DC City Council and the DC DMV in 2000 to make the idea of the license plates a reality. The idea for adding the slogan to the license plates to highlight DC’s injustice originated from DC resident Sarah Shapiro on Mark Plotkin’s radio program.
“Taxation without representation was tyranny hundreds of years ago, and it is tyranny today. DC’s license plates are working to drive the message that Congress must act to bring American democracy to America’s capital now,” said Ilir Zherka, DC Vote Executive Director. “We know from national polling that the plates have served to educate people who have seen them, and with more than 1 million now having been issued, our message is reaching far and wide.”
Declared as ‘Driving Toward Democracy Day,’ DC Vote and Ms. Shapiro were joined on November 4, 2000, by Mayor Anthony Williams, Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton and several DC Councilmembers to kick-off the license plate campaign by ceremoniously removing the old plates from their cars and replacing them with the new ones. Hundreds of DC drivers also showed up to trade in their old plates in order to take DC’s message on the road.
According to the DC DMV, the total number of ‘TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION’ license plates issued as of March 10, 2006, was 1,033,119.
Americans living in Washington, DC, pay the second highest per capita federal income taxes in the country. They serve our country protecting the ideals of democracy during times of war. They are subject to all the same laws as other American citizens. Yet, the nearly 600,000 residents of our nation’s capital have no vote in the U.S. House or the U.S. Senate.
An electronic image of the ‘TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION’ license plate is available for use by the media at: http://www.dcvote.org/images/dclicenseplate.jpg or by clicking on the image above.
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