For Immediate Release
Jan. 7. 2022
WASHINGTON – Ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Black Southern Women’s Collective (BSWC) today advised Democratic leaders that all eyes are on them, a play of the late rapper Tupac Shakur’s 1996 album, “All Eyes on Me.” The group, which consists of Faith in Florida, Faith in Texas, the Power Coalition for Equity & Justice, Memphis Artists for Change, and the New Georgia Project, issued the following statement:
“On the eve of honoring the life of a man who fought for the freedoms and rights of all, Democratic leaders should surely fortify the ideals on which this country claims to be based and pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act,” said Tameka Greer, executive director of Memphis Artists for Change.
The BSWC’s message comes days before President Biden is set to deliver a speech on voting rights in Georgia on Jan. 11 and before Sen. Schumer vowed to hold a vote on the filibuster on Jan. 17. The group is calling women of faith to a national fast which will consist of sacrificing something of value and refraining from shopping other than in support of Black businesses.
“Elected leaders must refrain from giving lip service to Dr. King’s legacy if they are not prepared to eliminate the filibuster and pass substantive reforms, especially around voting,” said the Rev. Rhonda Thomas, executive director of Faith in Florida.
“During the campaign trail, Black women made a demand,” said Ashley Shelton, executive director of the Power Coalition for Equity & Justice. “This administration must understand that Black women will not be pacified by speeches filled with flowery language meant to substitute for inaction. Echoing the sentiment of famed civil rights hero Fannie Lou Hamer, ‘we are sick and tired of being sick and tired.’”
“We elected this administration to move the nation forward,” said Phyllis Hill, executive director of the Black Southern Women’s Collective. “If the administration refuses to push the line, it will be telling Black voters that they do not matter. The administration will, in effect, be telling the nation that Democrats support the reinstatement of Jim Crow.”
“Now more than ever, the defining question of our time is whether we will go backwards,” Shelton added. “Are we going to be the 1964 or 1965 America, or will our elected leaders enact reforms that will allow us to move forward? Our nation appears to be backsliding, and what we cannot understand is why the people who begged for our votes are surrendering victories won by our ancestors. Dr. King gave his life, yet all these years later, elected leaders, particularly those who beg for the votes of poor people and Black people, are questioning whether they live into Dr. King’s legacy.”
“This Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I hope elected officials appreciate that Black voters are exhausted, and we feel duped,” Greer added. “Although, Black voters continue to show up, typically voting for the Democratic Party, we have yet to get what we need to have fruitful lives. Our families are coping with housing insecurity, financial instability, educational inequities, criminalization, and other challenges. We should not have to convince the elected officials who begged for our votes to work on our behalf.”
“We are tired of speeches,” Hill added. “We are tired of Dr. King’s dream being commercialized for corporate greed. The time for sincere action is now. And this burden does not fall to Black people and certainly not Black women. Black women are on the frontlines organizing to save our democracy and its time for the party in charge to join us.”
“Sen. Schumer, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris must know that all eyes are on them. We are watching because we will not allow Dr. King’s dream to become a nightmare,” Rev. Thomas concluded. “This administration must be more mindful and attentive to what ordinary Americans are going through.”
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Contact: Sydney Bagley, sydney@spotlightpr.org