Rev. Dr. Kimberly Russaw, 4th Episcopal District
Nikki Free’s AI replication of Navi Robins’ artwork depicts six Black women drinking coffee atop a skyscraper while the city burns below. The image resonates with many of the 92% of Black women who voted for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. In the days after the 2025 inauguration, many disappointed voters took to the internet to express their collective exhaustion with the circumstances. The refrain, “We Should Have Listened to Black women!” became a clarion call for those experiencing buyer’s remorse, realizing the negative impact of their vote.
Less than three weeks into the new administration, many realized they were caught up in a whirlwind of executive orders and memorandums focused on immigration, tariffs, government spending, federal workforce reduction, and expanding executive authority.1 Indeed, the whirlwind was so great that many seemed too disoriented to realize that these actions were working to the detriment of our most vulnerable citizens. The education system, science and technology sector, and industries such as hospitality, construction, and agriculture have been significantly impacted by immigration policies that restrict work visas, increase deportations, and lead to labor shortages. The implementation of new tariffs on foreign items potentially reduces freight volumes, which negatively impacts the trucking industry, as it has less cargo. Reductions to Federal workforce reductions create financial insecurity for many of the country’s otherwise stable economic contributors. Finally, National Public Radio (NPR) recently reported that a series of executive orders gives the president greater power over independent regulatory agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).2 These changes impact the types of programming available on public radio and affect the likelihood of bank depositor losses.
The country did not align its votes with those who voted for the other presidential candidate, but there’s hope! In a democratic society like ours, the citizenry has the right and responsibility to elect people who will propose and execute laws that safeguard the citizenry. Despite the Pew Research Center reporting that only 24% of Black citizens ages 22 and older voted in the last three national elections, every vote matters … every time.3 Given the impact of voting (or non-voting) on our communities, local African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church congregations should prioritize helping members participate in midterm elections, to ensure that the immoral acts by elected officials do not irreparably impact future generations.
Political activism is foundational to the ministry of the AME church. Empowering members to participate in the political process is biblically sound and aligns with AME church history. Participation in the political process supports the prophetic imperative to do justice (Micah 6.8), and the call to act on behalf of the most vulnerable echoes Jesus’ encouragement to care for ‘the least of these’ (Matthew 25:40). We are to work towards a just society and concern ourselves with those facing hardship. To that end, Richard Allen, in response to the injustices he and other African American worshipers endured in St. George’s Methodist Church, founded what became the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Later, Allen and Absalom Jones established the Free African Society to provide protection and social security for members, helping people find employment and housing, offering literacy and financial education, and supporting community projects.
In the spirit of Allen and the church’s political activism origins, here are three ways churches may provide education and encourage participation in the democratic process without violating the law or violating their tax-exempt status4:
- Provide resources to help members with voter registration and understanding the electoral process and their rights.
- Organize and host neutral information sessions on public policy issues
- Encourage full participation in the voting process by hosting voter registration drives
Perhaps the country should have listened to that 92% of Black women, but we can no longer afford to respond to this nation’s political chaos with an attitude of righteous complacency. If our AME churches do not take meaningful steps to educate and activate our communities on the political process, we run the risk of trampling upon the rights our foreparents sacrificed their lives to protect. And if we trample on our rights as American citizens, we disrespect the work of Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Baker, Diane Nash, Martin Luther King, Jr., and John Lewis who championed the 1965 Voting Rights Act. And if we disrespect the legacies of our political heroes, we foreclose on the ability to claim justice for ourselves and our descendants. And if we do not work towards justice, we are just like those who cowered and sided with the plantation status quo, when given the opportunity to join Harriet in her pursuit of freedom from chattel slavery. We cannot be complacent. It is time for us to do the work. Work our souls must have.
- https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2025/02/rif-watch-see-which-agencies-are-laying-federal-workers/403342/?oref=ge-skybox-post. Government Executive (a leading source for news, information and analysis about the operations of the executive branch of the federal government) reported the removal of at least 25,000 federal agency workers due to the reduction in force (RIF) executive order. RIFs have taken place or are about to occur in the Department of Agriculture which meets the needs of commercial farming, assures food safety, and funds ‘food stamps’ or SNAP nutrition assistance programs, the Defense Department which includes the Joint Chiefs of Staff and military offices and is principally responsible for warfighting, disaster relief, and homeland security, the Department of Health and Human Services which, through the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control, and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services promotes the well-being of the public, and Social Security Administration which administers retirement and disability benefits to Americans.
- https://www.npr.org/2025/02/19/nx-s1-5302481/trump-independent-agencies
- https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2025/06/26/voter-turnout-2020-2024/ 2020 The three most recent national elections are the 2020 presidential election, the 2022 midterm election and the 2024 presidential election.
- As always, consult your church’s professional legal expert.
