Let's start with Vote or Die because it is the most visible slogan. I remember when the slogan was put forth last year. Some were immediately empowered by it. Others were immediately put off by it. Some said that it was too harsh. But it persisted in lifting its proponents and converting its opponents. At least some of them. (One White man was so enraged by the Vote or Die magnetic sign on my car that he snatched it off, threw it on the ground and threatened to kill my wife, who had driven the car to a voting place for the December 12, 2017 U.S. Senate Special Election). Vote or Die.
What is the meaning of Vote or Die? To me, it means that if we consistently vote in big numbers and high percentages, we live longer. If we vote in little numbers and low percentages, we die sooner. We die sooner when we don’t have adequate medical care. We die sooner when we don’t have clean air, clean water, and clean food. Our children die sooner when they don’t have safe schools. We die sooner when we don’t have work that pays a living wage to provide for ourselves and our families. We die sooner when we don’t have safe communities. We die sooner when our young men and women go to fight and die in unnecessary wars.
Vote or die was instrumental in educating, stimulating, and mobilizing voters in the December 12, 2017 Special Senatorial Election. Black women voted in extraordinary numbers and percentages. Black people voted in higher percentages than White people. They understood that if they didn’t vote, their children, spouses, relatives, friends, and associates would die sooner. Vote or Die.
Our Vote is Our Voice. We speak to each other in various voices. We have one voice when we speak to babies. We have another voice when we speak to women or men or children or whomever. We certainly have another voice when we speak to those who have status or power. But for those in power, our vote is our most powerful voice with which to speak. Our Vote is Our Voice.
When we consistently vote in big numbers and big percentages, our voting voice is heard loud and clear. People in positions of power know who put them in these positions and who can (and will) take them out. These office holders will hear our voices if we vote consistently in big numbers, vote consistently in high percentages, vote consistently up and down the ballot, and vote consistently in all elections. Our Vote is Our Voice.
I am sick and tired of being scared and tired, so I am voting on November 6th. Fannie Lou Hamer, the powerful Mississippi grassroots civil rights leader and voting rights icon, said, I am sick and tired of being sick and tired. The slogan, I am sick and tired of being scared and tried so I am voting on November 6th, is a twist on this Fannie Lou classic. Fannie Lou Hamer was sick and tired of racial segregation that oppressed Black people in every arena from lynchings to voting, to education, to police violence, to economic deprivation, to ever-present fear, etc. Some forms of these oppressions still haunt our communities. I am sick and tired of being scared and tired, so I am voting November 6th.
I was present when a group of voting activists gathered in Montgomery a couple of months ago. They brought together people who were not voting or barely voting so we could listen and learn. Most of us had assumed that they did not vote simply because they just did not see where it did anything for them. However, another strong and unexpected theme emerged. Many were scared. That’s right, scared. They were scared about what might happen to them or their children or others they cared about if they voted. So much of the fear had to do with law enforcement. It also involved other governmental entities. I now see that this fear is real, deep and prevalent. At first, it was hard to see how so many could be so scared today, but now I see it clearly. I am sick and tired of being scared and tired, so I am voting November 6th.
Lift Our Votes High; Make Our Voices Sing Strong. This slogan is a take on the famous anthem, Lift Every Voice and Sing. We can lift our voices in a yell. We can lift our voices in a holler. We can lift our voices in a cry. We can lift our voices in a curse. We can lift our voices in fear. We can lift our voices in threats. There are so many ways to lift our voices. But voices lifted in song lift everyone. When we lift our votes high, our collective voices sing strong and sweet. When we vote in every election, we lift our voices high. When we vote for every position on the ballot, we lift our voices high. When we make certain our families, friends, neighbors and associates vote, we lift our voices high. When we lift our votes high, we lift ourselves high, our communities and our futures, and we sing with joy. Lift Our Votes High; Make Our Voices Sing Strong.
Epilogue – Slogans are certainly powerful. They become more powerful when we understand them. They become even more powerful when we infuse them with action.
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