Black America’s Voting Revolution

Michelle Obama headlines When We All Vote event in Miami in 2018. Photos by Hunter Crenian, Element5 and via When We All Vote, Fair Fight Action and Ben & Jerry’s. Originally published in AphroChic magazine Issue 10, Fall 2022.

In the fall of 2020, the National Urban League partnered with BET to launch a new initiative — National Black Voter Day. The day, part of BET’s #ReclaimYourVote campaign, was focused on increasing Black voter turnout at the ballot box in the United States. Black voter turnout has been relatively high in the US for decades. Pew Research Center surveys that examine voting patterns over the past 20 years show that a majority of Black voters turn out each election cycle, with 67% of eligible Black voters participating in the 2012 election. That number was higher than any other racial or ethnic group that year. But in 2016, during the presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, Black voter turnout dipped by 10%, resulting in a 20-year low (higher still than the percentage of eligible Asian-Americans and Hispanic-Americans who voted that year, but slightly lower than the percentage of eligible white Americans).

To address the dip in numbers, for the first National Black Voter Day, the National Urban League and BET partnered with more than 40 organizations around the country, including Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote, Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight Action, and the NAACP, to help get people in the community registered to vote, provide guidance on voting rights restoration for eligible voters, help voters create a voting plan, and demystify the US voting process, which can differ from state to state.

“In the current climate of uncertainty and unrest, it’s important to make a plan for voting — particularly for Black voters. Efforts to suppress the Black vote are coming from all sides, whether it’s restrictive state voting laws or foreign-based misinformation campaigns. National Black Voter Day is an opportunity to rise above the confusion and plot out a clear path to the ballot box,” National Urban League president and CEO Marc H. Morial said in a statement.

The effort became a monumental success. In 2020, When We All Vote reported that the number of African Americans eligible to vote reached a record 30 million, with Black eligible voters now making up 12.5% of the US electorate. And Black Americans turned out en masse that year, with Joe Biden receiving 92% of the Black vote.

Just weeks after the election, when polling data was in, Rashawn Ray of the Brookings In- stitution reported that, “The role of Black Americans goes way beyond helping candidate Biden secure a presidential victory. With Trump’s divisive rhetoric, overt appeals to systemic racism, use of outright falsehoods and distortions, and attempts to overturn the 2020 election through extra-legal maneuvers, Blacks helped to save American democracy. They enabled Democrats to overcome the appeals of a GOP leader intent on subverting long-held democratic institutions and ushering in an era of authoritarian rule.”

Still Under Threat

While the number of Black registered voters reached a historic plateau in America in 2020, the onslaught against the right to vote has risen to a fever pitch over the last few years. When We All Vote reports that state lawmakers across the nation have introduced more than 500 voter suppression bills since 2020. And that these bills and tactics seek to silence American voices at the ballot box, with an unstated yet clear focus on marginalizing Black voters.

“It’s great news that more Black Americans were eligible to vote in the last presiden- tial election than ever before,” says Michelle Obama in a video message released on this year’s National Black Voter Day. “But, at the same time, eligibility doesn’t mean those ballots will actually be cast — especially when in some places, it’s getting harder and harder to vote.”

In the video message, which was played on BET network, she is joined by When We All Vote’s Co-Chair and Phoenix Suns point guard, Chris Paul, who states, “We’re seeing the polling places closed down, early voting hours being cut, folks being purged from the voting rolls. Who would have thought that in 2022, our right to vote would still be under threat?”

When We All Vote Party to the Polls Kit

The two end the message by encouraging viewers to check their voter registration at whenweallvote.org and work together with their community to get out the vote. The video is sobering. Some 57 years since the passage of the Voting Rights Act, Americans, and Black Americans in particular, are facing a coordinated attack to dismantle the power of America’s Black vote.

The Brennan Center for Justice reports that currently, “This year, state lawmakers have focused on enacting election interference legislation, with six states already passing nine laws that threaten to undermine voters’ confidence in the security of elections.” Such laws permit partisan action in interfering with elections, seek to overturn election results and even threaten election officials with criminal penalties. And the Brennan Center has concluded that these interference laws “disproportionately affect voters of color.”

Shadows of the Past

Today’s election interference laws are a pull back to an America that existed before 1965 when the Voting Rights Act (VRA) was enacted — key legislation providing all Americans the right to vote regardless of race. Just eight days after Martin Luther King, Jr. led the march in Selma, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced that he would pass the Voting Rights Act. Signed on August 6, 1965, the sweeping legislation ensured that no federal, state or local government could impede citizens from voting in any way because of their race or ethnicity.

The legislation was intended to be a stopgap. Legislators believed that the VRA only needed to be in place for five years, and had hopes that America would resolve its issues around voting. But 57 years later, the fight for voting rights continues. The provisions of the VRA have been extended four times. And over the years, the law has been chipped away at. The Supreme Court is currently hearing Merrill v. Mulligan, which centers around whether or not race should be a required consideration when drawing maps of electoral districts. If the Supreme Court finds that race is not a required factor, Black communities could be redistricted in ways that render Black voters powerless in state Congressional maps.

During oral arguments of the case, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, America’s first Black female justice, provided an important reminder about the purpose of laws enacted to protect Black civil rights in America. Citing the Civil Rights Act of 1866, Justice Jackson stated, “I don’t think that the historical record establishes that the founders believed that race neutrality or race blindness was required. That’s the point of that act, to make sure that the other citizens, the Black citizens, would have the same [rights] as the white citizens.”

The fight for those same rights continues to be elusive. And in the case of voting, Black Americans continue to fight an uphill battle. But, a new cadre of civil rights organizations is looking to change that dynamic.

The Revolution Has Arrived — And It's at the Polls

“To celebrate our Week of Action ahead of this year’s midterm elections, When We All Vote focused on empowering voters and reaching our communities in creative and engaging ways,” says Stephanie L. Young, Executive Director of When We All Vote. “Every voice and every vote matters. And when we organize, mobilize, show up and vote, we can make real change in our country and demand a better future for all of us.”

Merging voting with pop culture, When We All Vote, Fair Fight Action, and Black Voters Matter, are getting citizens, and particularly Black citizens, excited about voting in completely new ways. On TikTok you can follow @blackvotersmtr and get a rundown on issues that matter to Black voters — climate change, police reform, worker protections, and gun control. And you might get to taste the new Change is Brewing ice cream they’ve created in partnership with Ben & Jerry’s if it rolls through your neighborhood in a Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Truck.

“Mobilizing and community-building with Black voters is mission critical for BVM,” said Cliff Albright and LaTosha Brown, co-founders of Black Voters Matter, in a joint statement. “There are so many pressing national and local issues at the forefront right now from healthcare to housing to basic needs like access to clean water, which we know disproportionately impacts Black communities.

Stacey Abrams, candidate for governor of Georgia and founder of Fair Fight Action.

While voting is always an exercise in using our power, we know this year that our safety, our health, our freedom is also on the ballot. And change happens when we use our power collectively at the voting booth. We are partnering with Ben & Jerry’s while on our tour this fall, which has for so long been a voice for change in our communities, and will continue to do the necessary work of increasing progressive power through movement-building.”

The seven-week tour is crisscrossing the state of Georgia — a battleground state — and is visiting HBCUs, big cities, and rural communities. The tour is focused on getting Black communities to participate in the midterm election. And yes, free ice cream will be given out along the way.

Fair Fight Action has a YouTube series, #CivicsForTheCulture, hosted by Chelsey Hall. Dubbed as “Gen Z’s Schoolhouse Rock” by Paper magazine, the series breaks down the political process before, during and after Election Day. The brightly colorful set, with Hall serving some serious lewks, makes conversations about voting and civics feel like you’re out at brunch chatting with your girlfriends. Kerry Washington, Steph Curry, Issa Rae, Yara Shahidi, and Kumail Nanjiani have all been guests on the series.

And Michelle Obama is running with the squad of squads, with When We All Vote Co-Chairs Steph Curry, H.E.R., Jennifer Lopez, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Janelle Monáe, Chris Paul, Shonda Rimes and Kerry Washington, just to name a few. The organization has led over 100 voter registration events across the country this year, engaged more than 22,000 people to register or check their voter registration, and they just launched a sweepstakes with Live Nation where participants can win VIP tickets to attend the Roots Picnic, Broccoli City or ONE Musicfest in 2023.

Through the power of social media and community-based events, these organizations have reached millions, greatly expanding the number of people who will vote in the midterms and other upcoming election cycles in the US.

Get Involved!

“If you don’t think it’s important, why is there a movement to stop us from voting?” stated Sixers coach, Doc Rivers. Conservatives are working hard to shrink the electorate in America. And it’s clear that they are laser-focused on attacking the voting rights of Black communities. The Black vote is strong. It has made presidents and shored up our democratic institutions for decades. And without it, America is in danger of moving away from democracy and freedom and towards authoritarianism. But today’s voting rights organizations are a powerful reminder that together, we can make significant change. The work to preserve voting rights is something that each of us can get involved in. And here’s how you can make a difference in your community:

1. Host A Party At The Polls. When We All Vote can help you host a party in your community to get folks registered and help your family, friends, and neighbors come up with a voting plan. You can sign up to receive a party pack with buttons, stickers, tees and more at weall.vote/party.

2. Help staff your local polling place. There is a national poll worker shortage and folks are needed to help ensure that elections run smoothly. Poll workers get training and are paid for their service. Sign up to become a poll worker in your local community at powerthepolls.org

3. Get on the bus! Join the Black Voters Matter “We Won’t Black Down” campaign and bus tour. You can engage in on the ground mobi- lization efforts in Georgia, a major battleground state. Sign up to become a member of the team.

4. Eat ice cream. Get some Ben & Jerry’s Change is Brewing Ice Cream. The cold brew coffee ice cream with marshmallow swirls and fudge brownies sounds delicious. You can find it along stops of the “We Won’t Black Down” bus tour. And you can visit Ben & Jerry’s to register to vote at benjerry.com.

5. Vote! Election Day is November 8. Be sure to check your voter registration, make sure you know where your polling place is, and look into early voting in your area. And don’t worry about distractions. The NBA announced that they won’t schedule games on election day and will instead encourage fans to vote. So, no excuses. Get out and vote!

Ben & Jerry’s Change Is Brewing Ice Cream