No More Excuses. No More Bickering. Just Vote.

vote

Finally. After what seemingly was the longest campaign season off ALL THE TIMES, we’ve arrived at Election Day.

It’s the day that some of you have convinced yourselves as the last day before everything finally returns to normal.

No more attack ads, no more scandals. No more rambling about emails and walls. No more uninformed talking heads talking out of their behinds. No more family members being totally obnoxious on Facebook.

And if you think all THAT ends on November 9, you must be new to America.

Listen, I know this election season has sucked worse than a Soulja Boy and Bow Wow joint mixtape.

Yes, that’s a real thing.

But here’s the reality – no matter which side of the political fence you’re sitting on, our country is ailing. And this election is your opportunity to heal it.

Unfortunately, there are far too many people in my life who’ve said they’ve opted to sit this election out. They’re sick of the rhetoric, sick of arguing, and frankly just sick of the candidates.

But to sit out an election because you’re simply irritated by American politics is the height of privilege.

If you’re not planning to vote, consider this – this election is not just about you. And it’s not even just about Sen. Clinton or Mr. Trump – those aren’t the only two names on today’s ballots. Look beyond Washington and look in your own backyards. Withholding your vote could deny your city needed infrastructure. It could cost your child quality eduction or your loved ones adequate health care. Local elections don’t get the press of national drama but their impact is much more immediate.

You deserve to have a role in the shaping of your community. That starts at the polls.

Look, democracy isn’t supposed to be easy. It’s not the flawless, apple pie-smelling, flag waving, fireworks sparkling system it often pretends to be. Instead, it’s a tough, daunting process. But here’s the kicker – you’re a vital part of that process. When you remove yourself from that process, the system sputters.

Whether you want to admit it or not, you have a voice. Why limit it to Facebook statuses and corny memes? That ballot speaks louder than any tweet you could send.

As a black man living in the cradle of the civil-rights movement, I dare not bury my head in the sand on Election Day. In my grandparents’ lifetime, dogs, fire hoses, cowards in white sheets and burning crosses kept black men and women from the polls – how dare I fold my arms and whine because my preferred candidate was removed from the race prematurely? How could I look in the faces of my elderly church members – those who protested and suffered terrible indignities so that I could have a voice in this country – and tell them my vote doesn’t matter?

I can’t. Because I know my vote does matter.

I hope you realize yours does too.

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2 Comments

  1. What confuses me the most when hearing African-Americans say that they’re not going to vote is not just the fact that our ancestors worked tirelessly to make sure that we had the right to vote. What baffles me is when they see articles, news reports, videos, etc. talking about how racist white groups are going out of their way to make sure that we don’t vote! So for those people who think that their vote doesn’t count you would think that they would look at these people and say to themselves, “if our vote doesn’t matter then why are they nervous about us going to the polls?” And then realize {OHHhhh shhhiiii” that we actually do have some influence after all!
    Now, I know that we are basically choosing between $#it and crap but at the end of the day, if we stay home and don’t vote for either of them or even worse, give away our vote by voting for the 2 other candidates that don’t stand a chance of ever becoming president, then what we’re essentially doing is allowing the idiots to give the entire sum of our state electoral votes to the worst of the 2 candidates!

    It just pains me to know that the very people who are trying so desperately to make sure that we never have the quality of life that we deserve don’t even have to work hard to ruin us! They can depend on US to ruin ourselves by not showing up on election day! Frankly, I don’t want to hear one more African-American person tell me that they aren’t voting because they don’t think that their vote counts. Instead I’d rather for them to just be honest and admit that they aren’t voting because they’re lazy or confused by it all and that’s why they don’t want to go down there. Anything but make excuses for what really just comes down to not having enough loyalty for their people to do their part. I mean, as 112 once said…… “Keeeep it rreeeeeeallllllll!!!!!”

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