dear white women, please don't f*ck this up (again)! 🙏🏾
we don't need another repeat of 2016
#WednesdayWisdom
“In the end, anti-black, anti-female, and all forms of discrimination are equivalent to the same thing - anti-humanism." ~ Shirley Chisholm
Morning Musings
The morning after the 2016 presidential election I rode the 156 bus to my job in downtown Chicago and side-eyed every white person in my view. Which one of you voted for That Man?, I pleaded with my eyes. How could you?!
Of course after the fact I realized Chicago is a big blue bubble, but the rest of Illinois? Well, not so much.
At the time, I was very naive. I didn’t understand how arguably THEE most qualified candidate in our country’s history couldn’t win (though to be clear, Hillary did win the popular vote. Damn you, electoral college!). I was baffled. I literally cried the morning after while brushing my teeth. The champagne Jeff and I had bought to celebrate remained in the fridge untouched for months.
The first presidential election I was old enough to vote in was 2008. And of course I voted for Obama. This was history in the making, y’all! I was excited. I was galvanized. And now, 16 years later, I feel that enthusiasm starting to return.
I was hanging out with the fam on Sunday afternoon when I saw the notification on my Apple Watch from my Black mom group chat. “OMFG HE DROPPED OUT,” it read.
Ever the journalist, I immediately grabbed my phone and went to The Associated Press website (because I’ve spent enough time on social media to know how rumors get started). And sure enough, there it was in black and white for all the world to see: Biden was out. Shortly thereafter we learned: Harris was in.
I’m not sure if I audibly exhaled a sigh of relief, but I certainly felt it. For the first time during this election season I felt some semblance of hope. Initially I tried to downplay my enthusiasm as cautious optimism, but a recent coffee date with an older Black woman friend has me all in.
I AM excited. About the possibility. About what this could mean. About the future.
And I have to be. I’m a Black woman married to a Black man and raising a Black daughter in America.
I have no choice but to be optimistic. I have no choice but to hope.
By Sunday evening a text inviting Black women to join Win with Black Women on a Zoom call later that night had circulated through my group chats. I was unable to attend because it was Wash Day in the Payton household and I was tending to Violet’s ‘fro. But when I logged onto Twitter the next morning and learned that 44,000 Black women raised more than $1 million on that Zoom call I felt a seismic shift. Oh, this is happening. This is really happening!
Of course there were the naysayers and people (including some Black women) who were like “America’s not ready for a Black woman president.” “They’ll never vote for her.” And so forth and so on.
Listen, I’ve been KHive since 2018. If we’re going to keep it all the way 100, I absolutely voted for Biden in 2020 with the hope (expectation?) that I’d be voting for Kamala in 2024.
Sure, she’s not perfect. What political candidate is? And right now, given our abysmal two-party system in the good ol’ US of A, we’re doing the best we can with what we got (shoutout to Mariah Carey).
Given the options, THIS is our best option. Kamala is our best option. And now I need for all the white women who screwed us over in 2016 (you know who you are) to get on board. And yes, that includes those of you who “didn’t vote for either candidate” in 2016 and 2020.
Not voting is not an option. Black people in America do not have the luxury to be apolitical or apathetic. We have to give a damn because our literal lives depend on it. Our very existence in this country is political. So yea, I give a damn.
And if anyone here has an issue with this me or this newsletter being political, please do us both a favor and exit stage right. I promise you will NOT hurt my feelings!
In the days since Sunday’s Black women call, I’ve seen other groups gathering online as well. And I literally love to see it. Because it’s going to take ALL of us to fight for change and I’ll be damned if I let Cheeto Face into the Oval Office once again!
You may think, “but I’m only one person.” And to that I offer this quote from author and cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
As I shared on Instagram Stories earlier this week, white women, get your friends. Get your spouses, your partners, your colleagues and your uncle who spews racist shit at the Thanksgiving table. Get all of ‘em!
Black women are not here to save you. We’ve done enough to try and salvage what little bit of democracy is left in this country. It’s your turn. Do the work. Show up. And for the love of God, PLEASE VOTE (for Kamala)!!!
Upcoming Events
August 2: I’ll be at the Black Women’s Expo signing copies of Stop Waiting for Perfect! Get your ticket here.
August 4: I’m collaborating with Three Avenues Bookshop here in Chicago to bring you a very special event! I’ll be leading a yoga and guided meditation session inspired by Stop Waiting for Perfect followed by a Q&A and book signing. See you there?
What I’m Reading: Kamala Harris Edition
Kamala Harris Can Win. Stop Saying She’s “Unelectable.” (Refinery29 Unbothered)
The ticket that could make Democrats fall in love and fall in line (The 19th)
What Would A Kamala Harris Presidency Mean For Black Women? (Essence)
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Thanks for this. I, too, am a Margaret Mead gal. I put up the same quote on the donation screen at a fundraiser for a women's health center in Alabama recently. And women *felt that* -- we don't need one million women marches (though, that's nice, too). We need a million little marches. Right to the polls.
You know what’s so interesting? The year you enter the voting pool. I was 18, just in college and voted for Gore. I think who you start with sets the mood for future elections.