General Discussion

I’ve been saying this on DU for some time now, but there is potential softening in the support for the Democratic Party in the African American community especially amongst Black males that has to be addressed in a real way. We will still vote in large percentages for the party but that might not be enough if real engagement and real policy initiatives geared towards African Americans aren’t discussed.

We have to earn every vote especially the votes of your most loyal voting group. Showing up occasionally or doing the same old outreach efforts isn’t going to work. I also think the old “Republicans are worse” argument though valid, isn’t effective when you are dealing with a group of people that have been voting to reduce harm for years in a country that continues to hold us in low esteem. At some point you can’t just run against the other person but you need people to run towards you because you have policies that will make their lives better not maintain the status quo. If I were a political consultant I would focus on USDA reform in rural North Carolina as the USDA has consistently denied Black farmers access to grants and capital that other farmers have access to. This was a problem long before Trump and continues to be a problem. I would also attack local laws from the Jim Crow Era that also block Black farmers from access to capital.