Democratic activist Stacey Abrams said Thursday on MSNBC’s “The ReidOut” that voters should vote for Democrats because Republicans “will not stop men from murdering women of color.”
She also accused Republicans of not taking action to “protect our environment” or hold police officers “accountability for their actions.”
Abrams said, “What we saw happen in Georgia in 2020 and again in 2021 has, indeed, led to hysteria from Republicans. But the reaction should not be to hold on to power by diminishing the power of citizenship. It should be. Let us evaluate our policies and do our best to convince these voters that they can join us. Voters of color are just like any other voter. We will pick the people who will represent us best and deliver for our needs. What we have failed to see from Republicans is a willingness to confront that reality and adjust accordingly. So instead, we are seeing voter suppression, which is the coward’s tactic when it comes to winning elections.”
Referencing the Atlanta-area spa shootings, Anchor Joy Reid said, “We’ve seen, you know, the Asian American community suffer this horrific attack. You know, obviously, we’ve seen ongoing police brutality issues. There are still cases that are open there. These communities are facing these multiple stressors, right? I’m wondering how you think that winds up intersecting as people like you from Fair Fight and others are coming back and saying to get into the political process?”
Abrams said, “One of the most important ways to engage voters, there’s absolutely the responsibility of registration, but it is connecting the dots. It is making certain as we saw with these horrific murders that if we do not have the right people in power, then they will not stop men from murdering women of color.”
She continued, “If we do not have the right people in power, they will not take action to protect our environment. If we do not have the right people in power, district attorneys will not charge, and police officers will be left to immunize themselves from accountability for their actions.”
She added, “What we are seeing happening, especially in Georgia, is that people are connecting the dots between, here is why we vote and here is what we get. I fight for voting rights not simply for the act of casting a ballot but for the act of being able to craft my future. That can only happen if I’m allowed to participate fully in our elections. That’s the message that we carry to every community of color, to every disabled community, to all young people, to any voter who seems marginalized and disadvantaged because we have proven to them in 2020 and 2021 that if we try it if we work hard enough, it can work.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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