BLACK WOMEN VOTERS MAY HOLD KEYS TO 2020 ELECTION

BY MARCUS BRIGHT

African Americans are reminded every day about the importance of the upcoming 2020 elections as protests continue to erupt across the country demanding justice and a more equitable nation. One of the most pivotal and deciding voting blocs will undoubtedly be Black women. Their potential reach is also very potent as they are often not alone at the polls.

“Black women also bring their families along when they are voting,” said Jasmen Rogers-Shaw, a political strategist and candidate for Florida State House District 95. “They are voting for the interests of hundreds of people.”

Criminal justice and policing reform, affordable healthcare, racism, and equal rights — they’re all at the top of the list of issues facing AfricanAmerican women voters, according to the “Power of the Sister Vote” survey published by Essence magazine. Experts say this demographic could be a secret weapon at the polls. “One way to address current challenges is to vote,” said Dr. Valerie Patterson, a public administration professor at Florida International University. “You want to vote for the candidate, but you also want to send a message about the importance of inclusion and the importance of representation. I vote in the spirit of Fannie Lou Hamer and Shirley Chisholm.”

The level at which Black women will turnout is still very much in question. Dr. Olivia Jackson, a political science professor at Florida Memorial University, points to the decline in the voter turnout among Black women between the 2012 and 2016 Presidential elections as a big game changer in those tight races. The turnout for Black women dropped from 70.7 percent in 2012 to 64.1 percent while the turnout for White women stayed about the same from 65.6 percent in 2012 to 66.8 percent in 2016.

Generations of Black women voters

Generational differences are a factor in the motivation of why Black women will vote. Different generations have dealt with varying sets of challenges. Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security are more pressing for older voters. Meanwhile, younger generations are facing burdens that older generations didn’t face at nearly the same level. For example, student loan debt. Younger college-educated Black women are faced with an enormous amount of student loan debt. They’re potentially faced with a lifelong financially-crippling economic albatross if student-loan debt cancellation is not voted a legislative reality.

Unfortunately, this is one of the primary reasons why some highly-educated Black

women from younger generations are in a worse financial position than their grandmothers were under the oppressive Jim Crow laws. According to the 2017 study “Women, Race, and Wealth,” Black women show negative median wealth at different ages regardless of marital status. Single black women in their 20s without a degree have zero wealth. The study also showed that the typical single black women with a college degree is $11,000 in debt. Married, college-educated black women in their 30s are $20,000 in debt.

Millennial Ann Marie Sorrell, president and CEO of the Mosaic Group, thinks there are not only generational differences, but differences based on people’s backgrounds and upbringings.

“Some issues are going to speak to some of us more than other, she said. “For example, I am an immigrant that spent most of my life growing up in the small town of Pahokee, so I look at things through a different window than others.”

Patterson, a member of the Baby Boomer generation, remembers learning freedom songs from the Civil Rights Movement as a student in a segregated school where voting was stressed.

“The idea that we are shaped by the major historical events of our respective generations applies,” Patterson recalled.

Florida State Rep. Anika Omphroy, D-Lauderdale Lakes, is a Xennial (born between 1977-1983). She believes the primary concerns among three generations of Black women in her family are the same.

“We work at it differently, but it motivates us the same to vote and be actively involved in our community,” Omphroy said.

Anna Stewart, a senior at FIU, is a member of the Black Student Union on campus and has been encouraging her fellow students to vote in the upcoming election. She believes her generation prioritizes healthcare, among other issues. “I think Black women voters are looking to be seen entirely by our elected candidate,” Stewart said. “Not only as Black individuals. Not only as women. We are looking to be seen as Black women.” There are several different factors at play. One is whether presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden will choose a Black woman as his vice presidential running mate. Sorrell said that would be a game changer, especially with the current climate of Black Lives Matter at the forefront. “There are a lot of deeprooted issues in our communities like gaps in wealth, homeownership, education, and health that a strong Black woman vice-presidential candidate would be able to bring to the forefront,” Sorrell said.

Black woman as next U.S. vice president?

Patterson suggests that a Black woman vice-presidential candidate would galvanize people similar to the excitement and enthusiasm around Barack Obama’s presidency. So would a significant number of Black women stay home if Biden decides to select someone other than who he promised?

“Do Black women want to see a Black woman on the ticket? Yes, but will they stay home if it is not a Black woman? I don’t think so,” Jackson said.

Still, there is no doubt that the selection of a Black woman as the vice presidential nominee would create an enormous momentum and galvanize a large portion of the Democratic party’s base.

It is clear, however, that Black women want much more than just a Black female figure in high political office. They want more than symbolism. They want substantive policy advancements that will create a better way of life.

“We must stop looking at personalities and start looking at people’s policies,” Omphroy said.

Sybrina Fulton, a candidate for MiamiDade County Commission District 1, suggests that policing and gun reform legislation are among the issues that will motivate Black women to participate in the electoral process.

“Black women will influence this year’s election cycle, not only locally but nationally as well,” Fulton said. “With the current climate of the country, local level voting will be instrumental as it relates to police and gun reform legislation.”

Black and white women voters

There is a clear delineation between the voting patterns of Black women and white women. Dr. Marcia Parker, a recent doctoral graduate from the College of Education at Loyola Marymount University, hypothesized that the economic factor was the main one that separated the perspective of Black women and many white women. Parker wrote: “Much of the differences in interpretations of the movement (feminist) were due to economic conditions facing Black families that were different from those facing white families.” Most of the racial wealth gaps that exist are a result of the lack of intergenerational wealth transfers available for Black families. That’s based on an array of reasons ranging from Federal Housing Administration policy, slavery, Jim Crow laws, employment discrimination, and denial of access to capital, to name a few. Ultimately, the priorities of Black women are the priorities of the nation. “There are so many things that are pressing down on Black people that should be in the top of everyone’s priority list,” Rogers-Shaw said. “Everyone should be centering Black women in their policy conversations. If we can address these concerns, we can drastically improve conditions for our country, state, and everyone.” With so much at stake, there is a level of intensity entering the 2020 election. People need a tangible change to their day to day life, not just flowery rhetoric. Voting is just the first step, but it is a very pivotal and essential step for substantial and sustained change to occur. “We have to have a multi-layered plan,” Sorrell said. “There is a place for everyone.”