ReMarcs Newsletter - September 19, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The passing of Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg is a monumental loss for our nation. We reflect on her legacy. | Ready to vote? We marked the first-ever National Black Voter Day on Sept. 18! Here are 3 easy steps you can take to vote TODAY. | On Breonna Taylor. The Louisville Metro Government and Breonna Taylor's family reached an unprecedented settlement this week. Here's our response. | Virtual summit. Are you an innovator or looking to start a new career in the tech industry? Join us on Sept. 24, 3-5PM ET for Tech and the New Normal! | Save the date. We're less than a month away from the virtual Equal Opportunity Dinner, hosted by Hill Harper! Check out the lineup. | Time is running out. Remember, the Census is a count of ALL people who live in the U.S., including Black immigrant communities. Complete the form online! | House Subcommittee Hearing. Watch our president and CEO Marc Morial's testimony on why Congress must pass the HEROES Act as soon as possible.

Submitted by rwilliams@nul.org on Tue, 09/22/2020 - 17:10

Louisville Urban League, Local Orgs Work to Register, Turn Out Black Voters

The Louisville Urban League (Louisville, KY) and several nonprofit organizations announced efforts to increase Black voter turnout Friday as part of the first National Black Voter Day.

The National Urban League and BET announced the day as one piece of their "Reclaim Your Vote" campaign.

On Friday (Sept. 18), local leaders announced the creation of the Alberta Odell Jones Black Independent Black Voters Association, in honor of the local attorney and civil rights activist. The organization will host phone banks to contact 42,000 unregistered Black voters across Kentucky and the more than 100,000 ex-felons who regained their right to vote last year.

Louisville Urban League President and CEO Sadiqa Reynolds said her organization will release a series of PSAs to help voters understand their options and how to fill out an absentee ballot. The league is also making a push to get people to vote when early voting begins on Oct. 13.

Submitted by ihall_11 on Mon, 09/21/2020 - 16:15

National Urban League, BET launch National Black Voter Day

BET and the National Urban League on Friday rolled out National Black Voter Day, an initiative focused on getting Black Americans registered to vote ahead of November.

The undertaking has more than 40 partners, including the NAACP, former first lady Michelle Obama's When We All Vote organization and former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams's Fair Fight Action.

National Black Voter Day is part of BET's larger nonpartisan #ReclaimYourVote campaign, which was launched earlier this year.

Submitted by ihall_11 on Mon, 09/21/2020 - 16:04

‘Retired’ McDuffie Never Quitting the Fight for Equality

It’s a good bet the knife-carrying suspect and his buddy who challenged racial justice protesters outside a Hertel Avenue bar never attended the Buffalo Urban League’s (Buffalo, NY) annual gala.

Neither, I suspect, did the Tonawanda store manager who called police on a Black man trying to cash his winning lottery ticket, or the cops who arrested and strip-searched the man for no good reason.

If they had, they would have been educated by the stories of African Americans who’ve defied all of the stereotypes and overcome all of the obstacles this society stacks against them.

On the other hand, if they were enlightened enough to attend, they probably wouldn’t have held such racist views in the first place.

Submitted by ihall_11 on Mon, 09/21/2020 - 16:03

National Black Voter Day is National Urban League's Answer to Voter Suppression, Misinformation, and Division

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League
 

“Too many people struggled, suffered and died to make it possible for every American to exercise their right to vote. And we have come too far together to ever turn back. So we must not be silent. We must stand up, speak up and speak out. We must march to the polls like never before. We must come together and exercise our sacred right.” – Congressman John Lewis

In April of 2019, the Associated Press released an analysis of census data and exit polling that reached a remarkable conclusion: the Black voter turnout rate in the 2012 presidential election exceeded the white rate for the first time in history.  A census report in May confirmed the AP’s findings.

Some researchers disputed the findings, contending that the milestone actually had occurred in 2008.

Submitted by cmonteil@nul.org on Thu, 09/17/2020 - 18:44

On Breonna Taylor: “Once Again, Black People Are Forced To Be The Architects Of Their Own Freedom”

LOUISVILLE, KY (September 16, 2020) -- Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League, and Sadiqa N. Reynolds, Esq., President & CEO of the Louisville Urban League, issued the following joint statement in response to the unprecedented settlement agreement between Louisville Metro Government and the family of Breonna Taylor.

Submitted by rwilliams@nul.org on Thu, 09/17/2020 - 10:16