Black men emerge as key constituency in 2024 race

ATLANTA (AP) — Every Monday evening, the basement of the Andrew and Walter Young family YMCA becomes a haven for men who, local leaders say, have too often been denied that right.

Black Man Lab, which has been working weekly to create a “safe, sacred, and healing space” for Black men in the Atlanta metropolitan area for nearly a decade, repeatedly brings together greater than 100 men to wish, meditate, and discuss the challenges and triumphs they face, as well as learn from their peers and elders.

“It’s almost like a commune,” said Carttrell Coleman, a visible artist from South Fulton, Ga., who has been attending the weekly meetings for seven years. “It’s a chance for us to share our voices and get resources. Networking is always good. It’s a kind of brotherhood.”

One of the last meetings, which got here immediately after President Joe Biden suspended his reelection campaign, took on particular significance as participants considered the potential of a black woman winning the presidency. Vice President Kamala Harris’ candidacy has refocused attention on black men, a demographic that Democrats and Republicans see as persuasive but whose multifaceted experiences and policy preferences are sometimes not noted of the general public debate.

Harris’ campaign also reignited conversations amongst black men about their influence in this election.

“Black men are the target, and we hold the keys to the kingdom. This is our moment,” Lance Robertson, executive director of the Black City Councilmen of Georgia, said on the meeting. “The black man built America. Now it’s time for the black man to save America.”

Black male voters have traditionally been probably the most consistently Democratic demographic groups in the country. But this 12 months, each major parties see black men, especially those under 40, as reachable voters. Whether black men show up in large numbers and to what extent they maintain their traditional support for Democratic candidates could prove crucial in November.

“I think, quite frankly, at the beginning of this process, a lot of black men approached the election with a lot of skepticism and fear,” said Bishop Reginald Jackson, who presides over all 534 African Methodist Episcopal churches in Georgia. “But since the Democratic ticket changed, there’s been a turnaround. I think they feel like they have something they can support. I think a lot of the issues that made a lot of them skeptical have been addressed.”

At the Black Man Lab event, the men in attendance got here from a wide range of backgrounds. The ages of the participants ranged from 8 to 86, and plenty of sets of fathers, grandfathers, and grandchildren spoke to the group in regards to the unique circumstances each generation faces as black men in America.

Black voters have traditionally prioritized policies on civil rights and economic mobility, which led them to overwhelmingly support Democrats.

But how those concerns translate into political preferences has modified as traditional ties to institutions just like the Black Church have weakened for some young Black Americans. “The Black Church, in many ways, has been repulsive to the Black male, and we’re just now working to address that need and fix it,” Jackson said.

Advocates stressed that for a lot of young black men issues issues such as wealth creation, entrepreneurship, police reform and workplace anti-discrimination policies are a priority.

“We want to see jobs and opportunities for black men, especially,” said Andre Greenwood, president of the YMCA, which is hosting the Black Man Lab event. Greenwood, who’s supporting Harris, said the economic messages shall be most vital to black male voters.

Harris’ entry into the presidential race sparked a wave of organizing amongst her Black allies. The day after Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed Harris, a virtual conference tailored to Black men drew greater than 53,000 attendees and raised greater than $1.3 million. The event, organized by Win With Black Men, a collective of Black male-led groups, has since held regular weekly meetings to interact Black male-focused organizers.

“Up until this point, these people hadn’t really been involved in this campaign season, let alone volunteering with outside organizations. I think what we’re seeing now is a huge level of organic energy that can’t be denied,” said Quentin James, founding father of Collective PAC, a Democratic political motion committee that supports black candidates.

Win With Black Men said it is going to distribute the funds raised to organizations across the country which might be working to interact black men. More than 150 groups have applied for support. James emphasized that while the recent unexpected influx of funds is noteworthy, the Harris campaign’s own commitment to engaging black men might not be enough if it will not be paired with well-funded outside groups which have long-standing trust in local communities.

Harris also renewed her outreach to black men. The campaign believes it has a winning message about black male priorities.

“It’s wealth and health,” Democratic Party strategist Antjuan Seawright said in a press release.

Seawright is leading the Democratic National Committee’s “Chop It Up” town halls for black men this 12 months in barbershops and other locations in battleground states. He noted that black men “are not a monolith” and said it’s a mistake for campaigns to assume “we’re only interested in criminal justice reform.”

The culminating goal can be to deal with long-standing skepticism amongst many black men a couple of political system that’s seen as discriminatory and never reflective of their interests. Others have addressed potential hesitancy amongst men about electing a lady to the very best office in the land.

Republicans also see a chance to achieve out to black men due to these long-standing frustrations. Donald Trump has often spoken of his interest in winning more support from black voters. Black Republicans, including Reps. Byron Donalds of Florida and Wesley Hunt of Texas, have held a series of “Congress, Cognac and Cigars” events in cities like Atlanta, Philadelphia and Milwaukee.

“The Democratic Party has taken black men for granted for years, but President Trump’s message is resonating on a historic scale because he’s doing his job,” said Janiyah Thomas, Trump campaign’s black media director.

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Marcus Robinson, a senior spokesman for the Democratic National Committee, called the Republicans’ voter outreach strategy “empty talk, racially charged rhetoric and offensive stereotypes, from questioning Vice President Harris’ identity to claims that black voters should identify with Trump because he’s a convicted felon.”

For many Black Man Lab attendees, the reinvigoration of the presidential race is a chance to make sure their interests are heard at the very best levels of presidency.

“I was on the streets doing wild things, and it saved my life,” said Damon Bod, an Atlanta exterior technician, of his experience on the Black Man Lab event. Bod said he lost his entire immediate family to violence, and the event provided him with guidance and community.

He said he would support Harris in the election because men who support her imagine she is going to defend the interests of black men.

“I’ve been watching it and I hope it does some good. My brothers have said yes, people who know me. But only God knows,” Bod said.