RALEIGH – On Friday, October 11th, Bishop William J. Barber, II, president and senior lecturer of Repairers of the Breach and national co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, joined a diverse group of clergy, poor and low-wage people, and allies to kick off the North Carolina Rise Up & Revival GOTV Tour & Election Protection Campaign.
In his remarks at the kickoff, Rev. Dr. Barber emphasized the power of mobilizing poor and low-income infrequent voters.
“In North Carolina [there are] 3.4 million low-income eligible voters. In 2020, 2.2 million of those voters voted. 1.1 million didn’t vote.The margin of victory was 74,000 in the presidential election. This means the margin of victory is only 6 percent of the number of poor and low-wage voters that didn’t vote. If 7 percent of poor and low-wage voters that did not vote were to vote, it would change the outcome of the election,” Rev. Dr. Barber said during the kickoff event.
He also noted that in North Carolina the coalition has already sent texts to 386,285 North Carolinians using peer-to-peer texting and reached out to 2.6 million poor and low-income voters overall.
The goal of the revival rally tour is to mobilize many of those 3.4 million poor and low-wage infrequent voters who live in the most neglected parts of the state. It is a joint project of Repairers of the Breach, the North Carolina Poor People’s Campaign, NC Council of Churches, and Forward Justice Action Network.
Rev. Dr. Hannah Broome, National Faith Director, Repairers of the Breach and President of the North Carolina Council of Churches, called on people to make their voices heard in this election to support the least of these.
“As a storm of oppression rages and the winds of inequality swirl around us, we the North Carolina Churches and Repairers of the Breach, stand firm in our call to action,” she said. “We will not turn back for we walk in solidarity with the poor, the oppressed, and those who bear the weight of low wages. We call on every soul of conscience to cast their vote as a beacon of hope and justice. Together let us be an unyielding force that shelters the vulnerable, uplifts the downtrodden, and also our journey towards justice should be relentless!”
This nonpartisan effort aims to increase voter education, registration and turnout – especially among poor and low-income voters – as the November election approaches.
The tour will also feature families and low-wage workers who were forced to flee their homes following the devastation from Hurricane Helene. They will share their experiences and speak about the compounding nature of poverty in these so-called “natural” disasters.
Voting rights experts will also address the recent changes in election laws for some of Western North Carolina.
Attorney Caitlin Swain, who serves as co-director for Forward Justice, talked about the importance of voting rights at the kickoff event.
“It is a dangerous time for our family, our friends, our people all across the South who are being hit by natural disasters and unnatural disasters – preventable and unpreventable right now,” she said, pointing to attacks on voting rights.
She urged people to take advantage of early voting.
“Early voting starts next Thursday. Anyone can same-day register during early voting in this state. If you do not have your registration by the end of today, you can go to your voting precinct – any early voting site – and you can register to vote,” she said.