Leaders Endorse Civic Engagement Action Plan a ‘Call to Colors’ Part I
by Cash Michaels, GDN Contributing writer 03/21/2018READ MORE:
- Prince Hall Masons Support Civic Engagement Action Plan a ‘Call to Colors’ Part II
- Butterfield and NC NAACP Supports a ‘Call to Colors’ To Achieve One Hundred Percent Civic Engagement at HBCUs – Part III
- N.C. Secretary of Veteran Affairs Larry Hall Supports a ‘Call to Colors’ Part IV
With the crucial 2018 mid-term elections looming large, with the 2020 presidential and gubernatorial contests not long after, leaders in North Carolina are joining together to implement a non-partisan civic engagement action plan, “Call to Colors”, to promote 100% voter registration and participation on the state’s HBCU campuses.
Led by the North Carolina Black Leadership Caucus (NCBLC), the call is for the North Carolina NAACP, the Pan-Hellenic Councils, the Prince Hall Masons and the Eastern Stars, to spearhead the drive to get sororities, fraternities and other student organizations fully involved and mobilized for civic engagement.
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And as a prime source of organizing information, supporters involved will be encouraged to subscribe to Greater Diversity News at GreaterDiversity.com to receive a free weekly Civic Engagement Project updates and events.
Dr. E. Lavonia Allison
Dr. E. Lavonia Allison, former chairwoman of the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People and of the NCBLC, is excited about the project’s goal on re-engaging college students in the political process.
“If we could get that moving, it will be the thing that we can, in fact, energize [the movement],” Allison told Greater Diversity News. “We’ve got the possibility of 80,000 students, with those ten HBCUs. The key, in my opinion, definitely, is the private institutions. The public ones, half of them are scared to death of what is happening with the UNC Board of Governors.”
Dr. Allison reiterated that she was “…very excited if we can, in fact, move this.”
NCBLC Chairman Warren
NCBLC Chairman Warren agrees that the civic engagement action plan can, and should succeed. And he urges all participants to make sure that they keep up with the latest strategies through GreaterDiversity.com‘s Civic Engagement Project at GreaterDiversity.com/civic-engagement.
“Yes, if we can get all of these groups mobilized to do voter registration and civic participation, we can have a major impact on the 2018 elections,” Warren told Greater Diversity News. “Also, on the 2020 election. We can make an enormous impact if we can just get the HBCUs, and the other organizations mentioned, if we can get them all together and work as a team.”
NCBLC Chairman Warren noted the enormous impact that black women had on the Democratic vote during the recent US Senate race between Democrat Doug Jones and Republican Roy Moore.
“We need to get black females more involved as far as turnout,” Warren added.
And subscribing to GDN’s Civic Engagement newsletter … Warren says “Definitely.”
GDN’s strategy for “A Call to Colors”
GDN’s strategy for “A Call to Colors” response is quite simple and powerful. Ask all alumni associations, at all levels, to create standing committees for non-partisan civic engagement. They would ask their members to volunteer 8, 16, 24 hours or more per election cycle, to help mobilize Black voter participation. Volunteer activities could include making telephone calls, Facebook posting, door knocking, organizing their churches or other community-based organizations, Greek organizations, working polls, supporting the NAACP and more.
GDN recommends that Alumni Association urge all HBCU Student Government Associations (SGAs) to make similar civic engagement pledges. SGAs should have twice a year student rallies promoting civic engagement and student organizations. “A Call to Colors” is a suggestion that appeals to student and HBCU Alumni members sense of community responsibility.
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