Redistricting the Philadelphia Region is a joint project of Azavea, a Philadelphia-based, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software development company, WHYY’s Newsworks. org and the Committee of Seventy, a non- partisan, non-profit government watchdog group now run by the former editor of the Philadelphia Daily News.
Key elements of the partnership were in place before the enterprise awards were announced. The project is part of Azavea founder Robert Cheetham’s larger efforts to help redistricting discussions around the country.
Philadelphia’s City Charter required City Council to redraw the 10 City Council district lines by Sept. 9, 2011 – six months after the publication of the 2010 Census population figures – or forfeit their salaries. One day after the city’s Census figures were released, the Committee of Seventy released a 15-step plan to bring greater transparency and public participation to the redistricting process and participated in public forums on redistricting. Some of its recommendations have been picked up.
Azavea’s project site explained historical abuses, timelines, reform efforts and redistricting principles. Atwww.fixphillydistricts.com, Philadelphians were invited to use Azavea’s software to draw maps of what they thought the 10 districts should look like.
“Maybe they should change the name for gerrymandering – the practice by which politicians carve out districts to help incumbents get reelected – to philly-mandering. The Committee of Seventy proposed to City Council a process for redistricting that invites public input into this oft-closed door remapping.”
– The Philadelphia Inquirer
WHYY organized and hosted an Aug. 8, 2011, forum attended by more than 100 people to roll out FixPhillyDistricts.com and explain to people how to use the tools. It also put up $1,000 in award money for the best citizen maps, which Newsworks and others published.
The contest was also sponsored by the Penn Center for Civic Engagement, Philly.com and the Daily News.
The coverage received many external links, television coverage, and local papers editorialized: “Maybe they should change the name for gerrymandering – the practice by which politicians carve out districts to help incumbents get reelected – to philly-mandering. The Committee of Seventy proposed to City Council a process for redistricting that invites public input into this oft-closed door remapping,” said an editorial in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
