Justice Beyond the Polls: Investing in Black Youth Organizers
Carmel Pryor
Casting a ballot, although important, is the floor, or the bare minimum, when it comes to creating real social change. Electoral engagement is key, without a doubt. But voting is only one part of what it takes to ensure that Black communities are seen and Black people are treated as full human beings who can thrive in this country.
Black youth and their collective power go beyond their strength as a voting bloc, and no one knows that better than Black youth organizers—young leaders who need sustained investment from all levels of government and philanthropy to continue unlocking Black youth power.
Black Youth Fighting Voter Suppression
Black youth are part of the largest voting bloc in America—Generation Z and millennials. And record numbers of young people voted in 2020, with Black youth voting in battleground states in numbers that propelled Biden and the Democrats to victory.1 Although white youth voted for Biden by a slim margin (with 51% voting for Biden compared to 45% for his opponent), youth of color gave him overwhelming support, ranging from 73% among Latinx youth to 87% among Black youth. This massive turnout happened in the middle of a pandemic and after years of unchecked voter suppression. Nearly 10 years ago, the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act.2 Ever since, voter suppression and discriminatory voter laws have been designed to block communities of color from the ballot box. ...
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