Awakening the Sleeping Giant of the Black Vote
The age-old method of knocking on doors to encourage voting has not been lost as Ohio holds another general election. For groups like the Ohio Organizing Collaborative and the Ohio Unity Coalition, canvassing started long ago, in the summer before Ohio’s special election for the previous Issue 1.
The Unheard Voices of Unregistered Black Voters
In engaging voters this way, coming right to their homes to educate and converse with Ohioans, folks like Prentiss Haney wanted to bring out the thousands of unregistered Black voters he and other groups knew were out there waiting to have their voices heard.
The Power of the Black Vote
“The Black vote in Ohio is like a sleeping giant,” said Haney, co-executive director of the OOC. “It is the one electorate in Ohio that no one is counting on to show up, and so when they do show up, it makes a big impact on elections.”
United Effort for Unfettered Access to the Ballot Box
The Ohio Unity Coalition’s executive director, Peter Talley, participated in a “voting rights bus tour” stop in Columbus along with the OOC, the Ohio NAACP, and the National Black Voters Matter Fund in an effort to allow “historically marginalized voters to have unfettered access to the ballot box.”
Impacting Ohio’s Policy and Democracy
Newly registered voters in the Black community and elsewhere could significantly impact everything from redistricting and minimum wage to reproductive rights and marijuana legalization, according to Talley.
The Fight for Reproductive Freedom and More
We believe reproductive freedom is something Black voters would be interested in,” said Talley, who also joined with Black Ohio Leaders for Democracy for separate voter engagement events.
The Path Forward: Golden Week and Same-Day Registration
For future elections, bringing back “Golden Week,” the week Ohio used to hold in which Ohioans could register to vote and vote, allowing those who hadn’t yet registered more time would be helpful, Haney said. Taking a page out of other state’s books and instituting same-day registration would also increase the likelihood of more voter participation.
The Dawn of a New Era
With the opening of polls for Tuesday’s general election, the hope is that the mobilization efforts will yield increased voter participation and amplify the voices of Ohio’s Black community, a force capable of shaping the state’s future.
Empowering Ohio’s Black Voters: Catalyst for Change
