By Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III, Trinity United Church of Christ
God placed something on my heart that I would like to share with everyone.
Politicians never do the right thing unless a moral witness, a prophetic Wing or an ethical enclave stands before them and demand change.
Abraham Lincoln did not free the slaves because he felt like it, but he was forced into Glory by the moral witness of the likes of Frederick Douglass. FDR did not create the new deal because it was a good idea, but he was forced into Glory by the moral witness of people who demanded action during the Great Depression. Lyndon Baines Johnson did not sign the Civil Rights bill and the Civil Rights Act because it was a nice idea, but he was forced into Glory by the work of Martin Luther King Jr, John Lewis, and Fanny Lou Hamer and others.
Unfortunately, in our American political system, candidates and parties are beholden to special interest, but never forget We The People have power. We The People, Black people, kissed by Nature’s Son have power. We have power. Power in our vote, we have power in organizing, we have power with our pocketbook, we have power with our voice, and we have spiritual power connected to our faith. Black people have historically saved America from itself. Black people have historically been a moral witness demanding this democracy include all who yearn to breathe free. I believe the choice this November is not between two candidates, but two visions of this nation. One Vision romanticizes the Confederate mythology that was birthed from the Antebellum South. Another Vision still sees America as the yet to be United States of America.
I cannot support any Vision, you can vote for whoever you want to, but I cannot support any Vision that speaks to making America Great Again because my conscience and my soul tell me when a person states America with the past tense language, “was great”, I must speak up and say what year are you talking about? Was it before I could vote? Or was it a year I was considered nothing more than chattel? Was it a year when women did not have the right to vote or was it the year before unions had been organized? I cannot support anyone’s false Nostalgia of white supremacy. I believe democracy is on the ballot for some and I understand it, the only issue is the horror, tragedy, pain, and destruction of human thriving in the occupied territory we call Gaza. For others it is Gaza, the Congo, the Sudan, and Haiti, but I say to us all we must look at all issues foreign and domestic. The question before us is, what will this country be not for our children, not for our grandchildren, but for our great grandchildren.
We must as a church, and when I speak of the church, I said we must as the Black church collectively, not churches that just have Black people in them. I’m talking about the Black church of Frederick Douglas, the Black church of Harriet Tubman, the Black church of W.E.B. Dubois, and The Souls of Black Folk. The Black church of A Philip Randolph, the Black church of Ida B. Wells, the Black church of Ella Baker, the Black church of James Lawson, the Black church of Willie Barrow, the Black church of Jesse Jackson, the Black church of Jeremiah Wright, the Black church of James Cone, and the Black church of Martin Luther King Jr. The question for us today, since democracy is on the ballot, is will we stand up for the 295,000 people who die as a result of poverty every year. The question for us today, since democracy is on the ballot, will we speak for the 87 million people who are uninsured in this nation. The question for us today since democracy is on the ballot, will we stand up for people such as members in this congregation who have to decide whether to pay their rent or purchase prescription drugs. The question for us today since democracy is on the ballot, will we stand with our Union sisters and brothers who are under attack by corporations who want to outlaw unions. For those who do not know, unions ended child labor, unions created the 40-hour work week, unions created the 8-hour work day, unions provided unemployment benefits, workers compensation, and your retirement benefits. That is because of the work of unions.
The question for us today since democracy is on the ballot, will we fight for HBCUs. They are being attacked across this nation where conservative legislators want the land that our historically black colleges sit upon. They are coming after North Carolina ANT, they’re coming after North Carolina Central University, they’re coming after Florida A&M, they’re coming after Alabama A&M, Jackson State, Albany State, Fort Valley Southern, any state institution that is a historically black college.
Since democracy is on the ballot, will women, let me say it again. Will women, not men. Will women, not men, but will women, have the autonomy to make medical decisions about their body, and will people of Faith be present to offer compassion, love, prayer, and support, regardless of their decision. Will we fight to ensure that every returning citizen has full citizenship rights after they’ve served their time in prison.
Since democracy is on the ballot, will we seek to abolish the penal system of incarceration that is destroying our community? Since democracy is on the ballot, will we vote to protect our right to vote across this nation; conservative legislators are passing laws to restrict voting rights and gerrymandering districts to dilute Black political power. Since democracy is on the ballot, will we fight to protect this planet as we are seeing the effects of climate change, right here in Chicago. Since democracy is on the ballot, you must know there are 46 judicial appointments the next President will make that will reshape voting rights, unionization, homelessness, and even possibly, outlaw historically Black colleges. Since democracy is on the ballot, I’m not a one issue voter, but I am a voter who votes to protect Black issues.
Since democracy is on the ballot, I’m asking today, right now, everyone in this Village, if you are a registered voter, if you are an organizer, if you are part of a union, if you lead a block Club, if you are a local activist. It’s time for us to get together as a community, and collectively as a church, and do what our ancestors have done, generation after generation, and save this nation from itself. Democracy is on the ballot. Now I said what I said, and I ain’t taking it back!
Watch Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III speech, presented at Trinity Unity Church of Christ on July 2, 2024, just days after the July 27, 2024 Presidential debate.
