Black America must rally around Harris

By Dr. Ron Daniels
TriceEdneyWire.com Columnist

In 2020, Black voters helped carry President Biden to the White House. But now that the president has done the right thing by stepping aside and passing the torch to Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party’s nominee, Black America must now respond by rallying around the vice president and helping her win in November. It is the only way to stop Donald Trump and the MAGA movement that remains a threat to our nation’s democracy and the future of Black America.

No demographic has been more supportive of Democrats and President Biden as the Black community. It was Rep. James Clyburn’s ringing endorsement of Biden during the 2020 primaries, after all, that helped the candidate’s flagging campaign win South Carolina and ride the wave to the nomination. A massive turnout of Black voters in Georgia made Biden the first Democratic presidential nominee to win the state since Bill Clinton in 1992.

But this is not 2020. Genuine concerns about Biden’s age and fitness for the office clearly eroded the confidence of Democratic voters, with poll after poll finding Biden further behind Trump nationally and in critical swing states. Critically, this included waning enthusiasm among Black voters in states like Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan that will all but decide the election. It also threatens vulnerable down-ballot Democrats across the country – which could lead to total Republican control of the federal government.

It is why we saw incumbent Democrats facing challenging re-election battles increasingly pleading with Biden to step aside. Here in New York state, Rep. Pat Ryan, in the midst of a heated battle for his upstate House seat, is one of the many congressional Democrats who called on Biden to bow out for the good of the party.

Now, Biden has made the courageous and selfless move to do so. And it is time for Black leaders and Black voters to enthusiastically get behind Kamala Harris and carry her to victory.

The loyalty to Biden of Black leaders such as Rep. Clyburn and others in the Congressional Black Caucus, for instance, has been admirable. But, ultimately, this loyalty could not come at the cost of a second Trump presidency and a MAGA Republican government. Black America must now unite to stop policies that will make it harder for communities of color to vote. It must unite to stop policies that will increase the wealth gap for poorer families. It must unite to stop policies that will make it harder for Black women to access health care. It must unite to stop policies that will put more guns on our streets and make all communities less safe.

Having achieved an impressive legislative record, President Biden is poised to enter the history books as one of the most influential statesmen in our nation’s history. And few presidents can match his achievements in just four years in the White House – from rescuing the United States from the pandemic and putting Americans back to work to reducing the crushing burden of student debt for millions of people and families.

These achievements ought to be celebrated. And all Americans – not just Democrats – owe President Biden a debt of gratitude for his five decades of service to our country. But now the torch has been passed to a candidate with a better chance of defeating Donald Trump and preserving our democracy. It is why Black leaders and all Black voter must seize this moment and unite to elect Kamala Harris our next president.

Dr. Ron Daniels is President of the Institute of the Black World 21st Century and Distinguished Lecturer Emeritus, York College City University of New York.

This article originally published in the August 19, 2024 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.