Written by Tanya Terry
Genesee County Clerk John Gleason along with numerous community leaders recently conducted a press conference to discuss legislation introduced in 43 states across the United States restricting voter participation that would limit mail and early in person voting and enable Election Day voting constraints that would require stricter ID requirements, limited hours and narrower eligibility to vote absentee.
Gleason pointed out attacks on voting rights could negatively impact Souls to the Polls, which has traditionally transported mostly African Americans to the polls on Sundays by bus after church services and was a big driver of Black voters during early voting.
“Not only are they attacking the Black brothers and sisters, but also the poor themselves that have to use mass transportation to vote,” Gleason said.
Gleason also said Republicans were saying the presidential election was stolen and said that’s why they’re passing the bills. Yet, Gleason said he recently realized Trump requested a mail-in ballot in Florida for a local election and this was a great irony.
“Our team speaks out regularly against injustice,” Gleason said. “My team is not going to give up.”
Pastor Timothy Hicks of Christian Love Faith Center said at this time the group is calling on everyone to come together as one.
“We refuse to allow them to take us back to the day of Jim Crow because we have fought so long” he said.
Hicks asked everyone to take an active role to fulfill the responsibility
“We’re going to let our legislators know that we refuse to take this sitting down quietly,” he added. “We’re not going to go away. We’re not going down. We’re not going to step back. We’re going to fight the good fight. As John Lewis said; we found some ‘good trouble to get into’, and we’re going to fight it every step of the way.’”
Ron Kenney, deacon at St. Mark’s Catholic Church, said when we take away the resources that enable everyone the opportunity to vote, we silence them.
“That’s not what we’re about,” Kenney said. “That’s not what democracy’s about. That’s not what our country is about. So, today’s about hearing everybody’s voice, and we need to stand up together in solidarity with each other so that everybody can be heard.”
Community Activist Claudia Perkins-Milton is with the Democracy Defense League. The league is for “justice for everyone,” according to Perkins-Milton. She called voter suppression “terrible” and something that would not be tolerated in Michigan.
“Arizona may do it, and there are a few other states that may do it, but not in Michigan” Perkins-Milton said. “We are warriors here in Flint. We are for what’s right. Discrimination has no place in our state.”
Former Grand Blanc Township Trustee Joe Massey, the next speaker, previously worked for NASA in the aerospace industry, where he was the only African American in his department.
“I had to fight every day because at that time, it’s nothing to brag about, but when I came along there were very few Black engineers, period, in this whole county” he said. “Even General Motors didn’t have that many college graduated engineers. So you have to fight. Freedom is something you have to fight every day for. If you think you can fight today and wake up tomorrow and be happy, you will never win the battle.”
According to Massey, Republicans are very angry they lost the last election and will do anything to stay in power, including suppressing the vote by discouraging people from going to the polls.
Steve Low, executive director of the Flint Jewish Federation called voter suppression a modern day extension of the poll tax. He also said members of the Jewish community know firsthand about bigotry and disenfranchisement from the rights and privileges of citizenship.
“Over 4,000 years of history, we have known what it means to be delegitimized, dehumanized, denied and deprived of a voice,” Low said.
He said more recently Jews remember being stripped of their homes, their careers, their properties, citizenship and being subjected to slave labor; medical experiments and attempted genocide.
“Sadly, even in this county, we have been subject to restrictive covenants, quotas and continuing anti-Semitic assaults on our persons and property,” Low said. “Those who care about the rights of all Americans to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness must fight to defeat attempts at disenfranchisement. We must demand greater access to voting.”
Sharon Allen is the Flint Community Organizer for Michigan Faith in Action (MFA). She asked Flint residents to call their family and friends about the bills waiting to be approved, which she said would disproportionately affect Democrats and people of color.
“There are over 250 bills waiting to be approved right now in 43 states,” Allen said. “Ask your family and friends to ‘call you legislators and ask them where they stand on voter suppression. If you are satisfied with their answer, thank them and move on. If you are not, ask them ‘why?’ If you are still not satisfied, ask for an in-person meeting at the State Capitol.’ That is your building. You are allowed in your State Capitol. Go and meet your legislators and let them know how you feel. Voter suppression should not be happening in 2021!”
Black Lives Matter Flint leader DeWaun Robinson said we all have a mind to understand what’s going on, but we have to do our due diligence and that means stepping up and speaking out. He said this could include writing letters to legislators so suppressive bills would hopefully not pass.
“We all have the opportunity to be on the right side of history,” Robinson said.
Calvin McQueen of the Flint Police Athletic League (PAL) said Democrats did not “steal the vote.”
Calvin McQueen of the Flint Police Athletic League (PAL)
“It was ours from the beginning,” he said. “This country and this state and this city and this county belong to everyone.”
Since we vote the representatives in, we need to make sure they represent us, according to McQueen.
Jamie Kitts, educator said he taught government for over 30 years and always used the words “equal protection of the laws” and “justice for everyone.”
“These voter suppression laws are nothing short of electoral apartheid,” he said. “I am angry about this. I don’t know how in America something like this is happening. It’s electoral apartheid.”
