Rev. Traci Blackmon, pastor of Christ the King United Church of Christ in St. Louis County, was moved into action after reading about voter turnout in Florida as a result of SOULS to the POLLS emphasis on voting in black churches in Florida during the 2008 election.
Church services were followed by early voting on the Sunday before the election – with impressive results.
“The data shows that in 2008, 33 percent of the African-American vote was achieved that way and about 28 percent of the Hispanic was achieved that way,” Blackmon said. “Because of the turnout in 2008, during the four years between then and now, the Republican legislature down there systematically implemented legislation that outlawed the early voting.”
When she read that, Blackmon, who is a Birmingham, Alabama native, realized that this is an opportunity for churches to collectively organize, just like during the Civil Rights movement.
“The majority of time before the marches for civil rights, a pastor or would gather people in the churches and have a rally and a revival to motivate and give them the strength to go out and do what they had to do,” he said.
There are some similarities.
“To have churches of all faiths come together to say this is important,
when you have so many efforts to suppress the vote, biblically we are mandated to be a voice for the voiceless,” Blackmon said. “We are approaching it from a justice stance – everyone deserves to be heard in the election on November 6.”
Blackmon pulled the faith community together to create their own version of SOULS to the POLLS in St. Louis City and County. Volunteers will take voters to the polls and back on Election Day.
“It’s not a proprietary effort, but it is a vision that the Lord gave me and I put it out to churches and churches are just responding, so it’s going really well,” Blackmon said. “Our only target is to transport people to and from the polls – it’s a nonpartisan effort and we are focusing primarily in areas of low turnout.”
It’s not about candidates or political parties. It’s about citizens exercising their right to have input in the election decision-making process.
“We won’t be telling people how to vote,” Blackmon reiterated. “We’re just going to take them to the polls.”
SOULS to the POLLS will provide free, scheduled transportation to and from the polls to anyone who needs the service. Those who need to vote by absentee ballot can call 314-480-6233 now to get a ride to the Board of Elections office to sign up.
The collaboration has garnered support from several organizations, including the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, the St. Louis Labor Council, Metropolitan Congregations United and the St. Louis Clergy Coalition, to name a few. Benefactor, Dan Fuller donated the billboards that are up in the St. Louis area.
As interest grows, Blackmon reminds everyone that the SOULS to the POLLS movement is grassroots – and she wants it to stay that way.
“It’s something we’re doing because we believe in it, and we realize we have to make it a personal investment to make this happen – so we are going to do our part to do that,” Blackmon said.
There are a number of ways churches and congregations can sign up and participate.
“At this point, we are really taking churches for volunteers for drivers…to man the phone bank on the day of the election and volunteers to make calls ahead of time,” she said.
They’ve registered about 30,000 voters who were not registered in the St. Louis area, Blackmon said. The next step is getting those people to the polls.
“There will be people making phone calls to assure that those who are registered have transportation to motivate them to go out and vote,” Blackmon said, “especially in light of the climate where pastors even encouraging people not to go out and vote because of Obama’s stance on same-sex marriage, which is a ridiculous stance for us to take as churches.”
SOULS to the POLLS will also hold a “Community Call to Prayer” on November 4, the Sunday before the election, at Central Baptist Church, located at 2842 Washington Blvd. in St. Louis.
Blackmon said, “We are asking all members of SOULS to the POLLS and their church members to come together and pray for one hour for justice to be served in the election; for everyone who goes to vote to be able to vote; for there to be no glitches … safe travel and safe passage to and from the polls and that the voice that best benefits the people be heard.”
Amen to that.
For more information, contact Souls to the Polls at 314-480-6233 or visit www.stlsoulstothepolls.org.
