Dr. Kenneth E. Jones, Editor

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September 2004 Editorial

“We Should Exercise Our Rights on Election Day”

The NAACP picture that you see on this page has a number to call for information about registering to vote.  But unfortunately, by the tie you receive this Christian Index, the deadline will have passed for you to register for the Presidential Election on November 2^nd.  As I understand it, the latest you can register to vote in the national elections is the end of September 2004.  That date has passed, so we apologize.  Nevertheless, if you have to register, you should still do it.  It’s your right and civic duty for both this time and the next.  So, go to the polls and vote!

I said all of that to say that this year more than ever, it is very important to participate in the national survey that determines who will be the next president of the United States.  People seem to forget that countless other elections besides President are going on in your state and local municipalities.  We all know what happened in 2000.  The results of the entire election hinged on the outcome in one single state.  And when all of the dust cleared, the highest office in the land was determined by merely a few hundred votes.  Essentially, it was the U. S. Supreme Court that determined the President of the United States.  A lot of people were upset.  The images of voting officials squinting into punch cards to count “dangling chads” remains etched in our minds forever.  But if there is one good thing that came from the 2000 vote, it was the reaffirmation of our necessity to go to the polls in the first place.

As a child of the rural south, I can recall how important it was for Blacks to go to the polls and vote.  My mother and father were very civic minded and valued the political process.  Black people in northern Mississippi took pride in casting their vote and even running for office.    After all, it was the Voting Rights Act of 1964 that ensured (at least temporarily) that we would not be hindered from participating in this fundamental rite of passage into civic and social beings.  Voting should never be taken for granted.  Yet, in election after election, African Americans – Blacks – stay away from the polls (See Princess Pegue’s article, page 16).  We use excuses such as, “It doesn’t matter.  They’re going to elect the person they want anyway.”  Or we say, “My one vote won’t make a difference.”  And God forbid that it should rain on Election Day or some other weather event makes it difficult to get out.  There are complaints about rides, gas, and just about anything that can be said to make the difference between staying at home and going out to vote.  In my view, one of it is legitimate.  I say that unless you are on your sick or dying bed or otherwise physically impaired, get out of the house and go to the polls on Election Day.  It doesn’t matter whom you vote for.  It is entirely your choice.  The last thing you want is for the same thing that happened four years ago to happen again.  Celebrate your right as a U.S. Citizen, a right that was earned with sweat, blood and tears.  Go to the po9lls and vote.

 Rev. Kenneth Elvis Jones, D.Min., PhD