Black female political activists feel heartbroken after Trump’s victory: NPR

Camryn Davis gave birth in May of this year and took a break from politics in preparation for the 2024 presidential election.

However, when President Biden withdrew from the campaign, she decided to end her maternity leave. For Davis, the Philadelphia regional director of a group called PA Youth Vote, Biden’s departure was a catalyst for mobilizing young people who had been away from politics.

“We have a lot of black and brown students, and they had a little bit more hope,” she said.

Davis said that while some young people were excited about Vice President Harris announcing her candidacy, getting others to care was often “like pulling teeth.”

PA Youth Vote is organized around issues such as public education and voting rights. Davis said she and others worked hard to get young people to care about these issues and vote for candidates who share the same goals.

After all, young voters were among the many groups leaning toward President-elect Donald Trump this year.

Black women like Davis have long been essential to rallying voters, but now that Harris has lost her chance to become the first Black female president, many Black women organizers are exhausted and wondering what’s next. I’m thinking.

“I’m exhausted by the fact that I sacrificed my mind, body, and spirit to educate young people and see what the consequences would be,” Davis said. “I’m exhausted as a Black woman, as a mother, as a youth advocate, because I’m only 24. I’m exhausted.”

Kadida Kenner, founding CEO of the New Pennsylvania Project, said the election results have caused some organizers to take a step back, even if only for a short time. Ta.

“I’m having more downtime because I’m disappointed and depressed and angry,” she says.

Kenner said that unlike the 2016 presidential election, he doesn’t think political organizing in response to the Trump administration will happen as quickly.

“And I think we need to protect our own mental health at this time,” Kenner said. “We can’t be everyone’s protectors and defenders all the time.”

For black women organizers, this time has brought mixed disappointments.

Black voters primarily supported Harris, even though many of her coalition partners, including Latinos and voters under 30, swung toward Trump. In doing so, they voted for black women.

“I think coalition politics is always difficult, right?” said Somer Foster, executive director of Michigan Voice. Michigan Voices is a nonpartisan organization that works with about 100 organizations across the state on democracy promotion and voter mobilization issues. She says it’s always tough when large groups of people with different needs have to come together toward a common goal. But black women like Foster have been trying anyway.

“I would like to say that black women are tired,” Foster said. “Black women feel that we have saved our democracy over and over again, and sometimes we have not seen the same kind of solidarity coming from other communities. And people are rethinking how best to utilize resources and how best to move forward.”

In Philadelphia, PA Youth Vote’s Davis said this may mean her group will likely be more selective about who it works with.

“If we join these coalitions, we need to make sure we are prioritized on other people’s agendas as well,” she said. “And when it comes to building coalitions going forward, we shouldn’t be building coalitions with people who don’t care about the issues that are impacting our communities.”

Other Black women activists say the election could spur a movement in the opposite direction.

Alexis Anderson Reed, president and CEO of State Voices, a national network of progressive groups working to build a multiracial democracy, says the next best thing is to reach outside the typical coalition. He said that it may be possible to increase the

“In the coming days, weeks and months, we’re going to look at the post-mortem of this election and the more progressive kinds of ecosystem movements and what that means for what we need to do. “There’s going to be a lot of conversations about, ‘Our work is different,'” she said. “And one of the things that I think is going to be very important is that we’re expanding our base and getting back to organizing.”

Since the pandemic, Anderson-Reid said there has been less investment in “deep organizing,” or getting out into the community and talking to people outside of election periods.

“I don’t think this is a time for us to be isolated,” she said. “We really have to find opportunities to expand our base, sometimes by collaborating with unexpected allies.”

Meanwhile, emotions remain high and many supporters are wondering what to do next.

Christina Greer, a political science professor at Fordham University who specializes in black politics, said that if enough organizers took a step back and reconsidered some of their past strategies, they could have an impact on U.S. politics. He said that there is a sex.

“I think it will look different,” she said. “Remember, it’s only been (a few) weeks, so emotions are still very raw, very high, and data is still being collected. But… I think a lot of organizers, at least at this point, are saying, ‘Well, why would we organize people who don’t want to engage with us in the community?’

Greer said it’s difficult to predict how this election will affect all future organizers. Black women are often not recognized as leaders of large political movements, but their work is essential, she said.

“There’s never been a moment in this country where Black women as a whole were like, ‘You know what? I’m working hard for this country that doesn’t recognize my efforts,'” Greer said. . “‘It doesn’t value my intellectual input. It doesn’t value my blood, sweat, and tears. So you guys can understand that.’

How long some black women decide to take a step back is an open question. Most organizers say they intend to continue the work they have been doing, although they are reorganizing themselves.

Angelique Hinton, executive director of PA Youth Vote, also said she was disappointed in the election. But she says coalition building remains essential, especially if the goal is multi-ethnic democracy.

“I’m still very interested, because we are stronger together and we know that we are part of the same community. And, you know, I “We know that if we build coalitions, we can come together to address the issues these communities are feeling and help them understand how to hold their leaders accountable,” she said. .