A message from the NAACP
No more talking down to us and disrespecting our communities. In 2016, Black voters in the presidential election
declined for the first time in 20 years, and our numbers usually drop during midterm elections. This is not an
election we can afford to sit out. The organizing being done this year is about more than a single election. It is about
building long-term empowerment and enhancing the political voice and influence of our communities. It is about
taking the next five years to make voters of color a potent political force that cannot be ignored or taken for granted.
Speak on the consequences of elections, including how the White House and Attorney General Jeff Sessions,
Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and others are implementing policies that set us back. How they are
engaged in a war against civil rights, including removing protections for voting rights, public education and against
police brutality.
Talk about the administrations’ targeted strategy to stack the Supreme and Federal Courts with
overwhelmingly White male judges with conservative philosophies.
We know what happened with the War on Drugs and the mass incarceration it created in our communities. If we don’t vote, others will continue to make decisions about our communities and our lives.
Remind our Sororities, Fraternities, friends, family and most importantly young people of what happens when African Americans show up and show out at the polls. Remind them of the power of Black women and what happened in Alabama, Georgia and what could happen with a record number of Black governors elected if we show out. Remind them that if we increase turnout by just 3 – 5 percent in key states we can radically transform the national political landscape.
Share with Black voters that if we don’t vote, our issues don’t matter. Share the fact that we can’t create change without the young and millennial voters. Remind our social and personal networks (at every turn) that 59 percent of eligible voters are Gen Xers, millennial or post- millennials – without them our power is diluted.
We can’t just target those who we know will vote but those who are tough to reach as well. This election is about respecting our communities, respecting our leaders and organizations and respecting the Black vote!