Why Should I Vote

Black Politics: Why Should I Vote – Blacks Disenfranchisement with the Political System 

The first installment of the Black Politics section focuses on our attitude towards the political system and how it effects the Black Community.

The 3 Questions

1. Should Black people feel obligated to vote?

2. Do you believe your vote really counts?

3. Do you feel that Blacks are less patriotic and if so why?

FRONT STREET

We’ve all heard the saying “your vote counts” but how many of us believe that?  Although We came out in record numbers for the last Presidential election, Our enthusiasm has been noticeably absent in the years since that November day in 2008.  Not only has participation lessened, but the feeling that the system currently in place can actually create change for Us has also diminished.  How many Black people have become so disenfranchised with the political system that they say to hell with it and refuse to participate? Right or wrong does this attitude contribute to the destruction of the Black Community?

Please write in and respond to our 3 poll questions or post some questions that you would like to see discussed.  These questions and more will be addressed during the discussion found on YouTube beginning on  4/15/2012.  This video was filmed March 10, 2012.

Why Should I Vote Part 1

Why Should I Vote Part 2 

Why Should I Vote Part 3

Why Should I Vote Part 4

 

 

 

 

3 thoughts on “Why Should I Vote”

  1. Why Should I Vote?

    1. Should Black people feel obligated to vote?

    I believe every American who is eligible to vote is obligated to do so and should want to vote to have their voice heard. In 1957, Dr. Martin Luther King, while on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, stress the need for Americans, especially black folks, to be afforded the broad based opportunity to vote like their white counterparts. He vocalized “Give us the ballot” and helped begin to clean the stain of racial disenfranchisement. A passage for blacks to vote had to be fought for ever since the Emancipation Proclamation and the 15th Amendment over one hundred and forty years ago, which is cause enough for everyone to enhance their existence to get out and vote.

    2. Do you believe your vote really counts?

    I truly believe my vote counts. My vote strengthened the United States’ governance which led to the optimistic election of our current president.

    3. Do you feel that Blacks are less patriotic and if so why?

    I do not feel Blacks are less patriotic than any other race of people. Our black community (BC) simply needs to focus more outwardly to build and reinforce enduring relationships with one another and other cultures. In my opinion, the BC should continue to evolve the long standing roadmap to increased community information sharing, expedite education activities, improve national awareness, and leverage lessons learned from history. Black patriotism reaches back to the days of slavery and is visually unified with our current deployments in today’s U.S. military.

    Luther T. Clemmons, Jr.

  2. 1. Should Black people feel obligated to vote?

    I personally feel that if you don’t vote you don’t have a right to complain about what is going on from a policy perspective. This goes double for Black folks. Not to wallow in the past, but Black people literally died for us to be able to go to the polls and vote and it would be offensive to their memory and to people all around the world who didn’t have the opportunity to do so. There is a reason why parties still try to encourage people, especially Black people, not to vote. No matter how insignificant you may think your vote is or how corrupt you think the system may be you should know and understand that one vote can make a difference and that this is maybe the one time your voice can truly be heard.

    2. Do you believe your vote really counts?

    I know that this is a touchy subject, especially since 2000, but I still believe that every vote makes a difference. Whether it is counted or not is a different story. We have all heard the stories of how they tell people they are ineligible to vote and they are eligible, or how they send you to the wrong place, or machines breakdown and the lines are so long that it would take you all day to cast your vote. But, this is exactly why it is so important to vote. This is how you know that your vote and my vote is truly worth something.

    3. Do you feel that Blacks are less patriotic and if so why?

    I can’t speak for everybody, but I would not consider myself a patriot at all. This country has and continues to try and treat Black people as second class citizens that are monolithic in Our thinking and in Our actions. Truth be told there is no better place in the world than America, however we have never been treated as Americans. We just got Our full citizenship to an extent in 1965. We are constantly placed in the worst situations which even if self inflicted, can be drawn back to an unfair policy that was put in place before we could vote without the fear of being lynched or beaten or worst. The way I see it, America is lucky that Our nature is not the same as other revolutionary groups throughout history, otherwise this country would have been torn apart. So, in short I am less patriotic because I have been treated less patriotically.

  3. 1. Should Black people feel obligated to vote?

    Black people should vote if they feel compelled to support a specific candidate and their views. No one should feel obligated to do anything. At the same time if black people do not vote we can not complain about our lack of representation in politics and our deteriorating neighborhoods. Our only obligation is to do what we feel is best for our individual communities and if that is electing a mayor, senator, governor, sheriff, or whatever we need to feel obligated t o take care of our homes.

    2. Do you believe your vote really counts?

    I believe our vote counts as much as any other races does. Our vote help get our first black president elected. It only at times seems as though our vote doesn’t count because it is so spread out. I feel at times as black people we expect each of us to have the same needs and wants and therefore support the same candidate. But we all have different views that sway our decisions. Every vote counts. Just recently the republican primary’s came down to a few votes between Santorum and Romney.

    3. Do you feel that Blacks are less patriotic and if so why?

    Definitely so. We have a lot of reasons to feel less patriotic. How could we be as patriotic for this country when we have been mistreated from the day we arrived. Also, once the laws were changed to level the playing field things got worse in some areas. In 2012 where affirmative action is still necessary for black to have the same opportunity as whites, how can we be expected to be as patriotic as a white american. Now, as if things couldn’t seem more obvious, i’d like to point to two areas. The first is how disrespectful people are to the President of the United States. He has not been given an inch of opportunity to make changes for our nation, and when he does propose something he is attacked and his position as president is disrespected. The second is one of our most “patriotic days,” the 4th of july. America on that day in 1776 began celebrating independence, but we as blacks were not independent from individual Americans until 1865, over 100 years later. Then 100 years later in 1965 blacks were legally allowed to vote. So, how could we be as patriotic when we have never been fully accepted in this country.

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