A multitude of organizations, including the NAACP and the National Urban League, have teamed up to make Friday, Sep. 20, National Black Voter Day. The event is a new initiative meant to increase voter registration among Black Americans ahead of the November election. Stand Up Mobile, a local non-profit focused on voting rights advocacy, voter education, and empowering Black voters in Mobile, is marking the event with both online education and in-person voter engagement efforts.
Stand Up Mobile is hosting an in-person volunteer canvass in honor of National Black Voter Day from 5:30 p.m. – 7 p.m. at Central Presbyterian Church in Mobile on Friday. The organization is also organizing a virtual phone bank held over Zoom. “Volunteers will be talking with Black voters in the community about the importance of the upcoming election, and how voters can register to vote or check their registration status,” according to the organizers.
Beverly Cooper, co-founder of Stand Up Mobile, described the organization’s plans for the events.
“Stand Up Mobile has planned for two events to get Black voters in Mobile registered to vote. The first is a virtual phone bank, volunteers will call from the comfort of their homes or offices and be connected virtually with other volunteers,” said Cooper. She went on to describe how volunteers will be “working as a team and sharing the excitement associated with helping citizens understand the importance of registration and having a plan to vote.”
“It also [helps] Stand Up Mobile gather information on what issues are important to voters this year,” Cooper continued. “We are partnering with local church groups, Greek organizations and Black Voters Matter to encourage greater participation in the upcoming election.”
Cooper also expanded on what the Stand Up Mobile’s volunteer canvassing will look like, “we will hit the streets with volunteers and door knock in the Black community talking with potential voters, sharing information on getting registered if they are not, providing literature, reminding those of the opportunity to vote absentee” and engaging in “all forms of voter education.”
“Stand up mobile is dedicated to increasing the voice of the black community in elections at all levels. We believe voting is process, not an event and we are boots on the ground for every voting season,” Cooper told APR.
Stand Up Mobile’s efforts are particularly noteworthy given how Alabama’s
voter registration rates have been lagging behind those in other states — especially among communities of color. Statistics from the Alabama
Secretary of State’s Elections Division reveal that a total of 898,655 active Black voters were registered in the state in August of 2020, while only 869,365 are registered as of August this year.
Efforts to “get out the vote” like Friday’s could be quite impactful come November, as national polling continues to indicate that the presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will be a close one.
