For Black women in Detroit, mobilizing for Kamala Harris a ‘moment of pride’

This BridgeDetroit story was produced as part of the 2024 Elections Reporting Grant Program, organized by the Center for Community Media and funded by the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and the Tow Foundation.

Kathryn Wilson was serving up lobster from her food truck at Hart Plaza this summer when she learned Black women were organizing a conference call to support Kamala Harris for president. 

She hopped on close to midnight and was inspired to hear hundreds of women still talking about how Harris as the Democratic nominee re-energized their interest in the 2024 election.

“It’s a moment of pride,” Wilson said. “If she can be president, it gives every young Black girl an opportunity to see herself in that role.”

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After President Joe Biden stepped down, Wilson’s 93-year-old mother Gwendolyn reached out.

A member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority since 1950, Gwendolyn said AKA asked her to participate in phone banks, something she hadn’t done since Barack Obama ran in 2008. Wilson, 64, said her mother convinced her to sign up too. 

Black women have long been a loyal voting bloc for the Democratic Party, and the prospect of Harris becoming president is fueling a local movement to support her in the November election. 

Harris supporters who spoke with BridgeDetroit said her campaign is not only historic – she’s the first Black and Asian American woman on the presidential ticket – it affirms their political power is growing after decades of sticking with Democrats.

Women historically vote at higher rates than men, and the gender gap in turnout is the largest among Black voters. Black women are institutions within Democratic campaigns, making phone calls, knocking on doors and building relationships.

“We have been saying for a long time, if you give us a chance, if we can get in the driver’s seat, we can take the White House,” said Lavonia Perryman Fairfax, a longtime Democratic activist and political commentator. “We have to come together and organize.”

Gwendolyn grew up in Mississippi at a time when voting rights were not assured. By the time of the 1964 Voting Rights Act, less than 7% of Black people in the state were registered to vote. 

She also was alive before the landmark Roe v. Wade decision of 1973 enshrined the right to abortion and witnessed its reversal in 2022. Harris’ campaign tagline “we’re not going back” resonates for Gwendolyn. It does feel like the country is going backward, she said.

“I think Trump might fool with democracy, you know, he looks out for himself,” Gwendolyn said. “I couldn’t believe it when they said he won. I didn’t know anybody who voted for Trump. Now here’s a woman who is going to do some things that always should have been done.” 

‘What’s at stake’

The Harris-Walz campaign views Black women as the backbone of its coalition. By mid-August, the campaign contacted 140,000 Black women living in Detroit and hosted more than a dozen events to recruit volunteers.

“People listen to women when we get involved in movements,” said Dee Jones, a Detroiter and Democratic Party organizer who previously worked to elect former Gov. Jennifer Granholm. “That campaign needs to send people out into the neighborhoods, especially where Black men are who feel like their vote doesn’t matter.”

Jones was in the audience when Harris came to Romulus for her first Michigan campaign rally. The Democratic precinct delegate felt there was “no hope” that Biden would win. Jones, a Democratic precinct delegate, said she witnessed a vibe shift from “doom and gloom” over another Biden term to “happy and positive” with Kamala running in his place.

In Michigan, Harris described herself and running mate Tim Walz as “joyful warriors.” Supporters say it’s a way of staying positive while also going on the offensive against Trump.

“I don’t tell people ‘you should vote for Harris,’” Jones said. “I tell them what’s at stake.”

Jamil Scott is a professor at Georgetown University who studies how race and gender identity impacts political behavior. She said efforts by the Harris-Walz campaign to turn out Black voters is important in swing states like Michigan and Georgia, which helped propel Biden to victory in 2020.

But Democrats will face challenges in courting younger voters who are interested in civic engagement but don’t identify with either political party, she said. 

“There’s a generation of younger people who don’t feel that level of connection and duty (to the Democratic Party) in the same ways that older people do,” Scott said. “We’re in the door now, and younger people are questioning, is this enough?”

Cidney Calloway, 32, considers herself an independent voter who is more driven by policy than partisan loyalty. Calloway voted uncommitted, snubbing Biden in the February primary, but is planning to support Harris in November. 

“I can’t not participate; I believe this is an opportunity for (Harris) to break barriers to set up this next group of Black female politicians,” Calloway said. “That’s why I’m voting for Kamala.”

Stephane Bond, 53, said Biden’s decision to step down encouraged her to vote. Bond said “willful blindness” by Democrats about Biden’s age made her disinterested in voting altogether this year. When Biden dropped out, she took another look at candidates in the August primary and decided to vote in down ballot races.

Bond said a sense of personal connection drew her to Harris.

“When Barack Obama was running for his first term, I felt so empowered as a Black person,” Bond said. “This time I feel doubly empowered on so many levels. Kamala Harris is Jamaican, I’m Jamaican. She is part of a sorority, I have family and friends in Black sororities. I have a lot of things in common with her.” 

Taylor Harrell, a native Detroiter who works on Democratic campaigns, organizes weekly phone calls to put those feelings of connection to work. She helps run a “Black Women for Kamala” Facebook page with nearly 300,000 members and other social media mobilization efforts. 

“Detroit’s most reliable voter is a Black woman over the age of 53,” Harrell said. “They carry elections.” 

Harrell was with a group of Black women who sipped cocktails at Rosa, a west side cafe, and compared organizing strategies while waiting for Harris to accept the nomination and cap off the DNC. 

“It’s more than one day, one phone call, it’s about getting out there and educating people who feel like Trump brought them a stimulus check,” Harrell said. “Seniors are good at phone banks. Gen Z is good at social media, the millennials and Gen Xers want to send postcards. Progress is a process and we can’t afford to lose momentum.” 

Voters support Harris for reasons beyond her identity, expressing urgency around defending abortion rights, securing economic prosperity and rebuking the conservative Project 2025 agenda.

Residents also recall Trump’s effort to negate their votes through false voter fraud claims that mobilized harassment of election workers, many of whom are Black women.

‘Economic security’

Detroiters said enthusiasm for Harris spiked after she replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee in July, but they had few policy proposals to latch onto. Campaign events in August were avenues to introduce Harris and celebrate her candidacy.

Recent polls show inflation, particularly the rising cost of household expenses, is the most important issue for Black women in Michigan. Economic issues ranked higher than abortion and threats to democracy in a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation released in July. 

Harris outlined her economic agenda for the first time at an Aug. 16 rally in North Carolina. Proposals were focused on delivering “economic security” with tax cuts and new investments.

She called for expanding a child tax credit for low-income and middle-class families and creating a $6,000 tax credit for new parents. She pitched a $25,000 down-payment program for first-time homebuyers, modeled after a similar grant in Detroit. Harris said she’d seek new tax incentives to build affordable housing, committed to eliminating medical debt and pledged to ban price gouging.

Calloway, who is the daughter of a City Council member and co-leads a city task force on reparations, said Harris’ pitch is a “great start.” But she wants to see more focus on eliminating racial wealth gaps, capping rent increases and affordable childcare. 

“We want to start our families, and we do need that help because of inflation,” she said.

A week after a major rally in Romulus, the Harris-Walz campaign hosted a smaller event focused on Black women at The Garden Theater in Detroit. Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield, a key campaign surrogate, emphasized the closeness of the upcoming race and the importance of every vote.

Focus on so-called “kitchen table issues” has been a successful strategy for Democrats in Michigan who swept into power in the wake of Trump’s presidency, securing control of the state Legislature and governorship for the first time since 1984.

Some voters have been waiting for more details on how Harris will tackle the rising cost of living. While economic indicators show low unemployment and declining inflation, consumers are less optimistic about their personal finances than before Biden and Harris took office.

LaDuana Allen, 49, said she’s “straddling the fence” between Trump and Harris based on the economy. 

“Republicans can help with a more stable economy, that’s important to me,” Allen said in August. “But Trump incites hatred. I’m not cool with hatred. The presidential thing is rough for me right now, it’s going to take a little bit of homework for me. I’ll see what she’s about and what she’s doing.” 

Tyshawnna Black, 34, said she considers herself a Democrat but trusts Trump on economic issues. She’s planning to vote for the former president, despite some reservations. The former president has claimed Harris is responsible for price increases for food, energy and housing. 

“I can’t agree with all of Trump’s politics,” Black said. “But he doesn’t care about color, he cares about green. That’s what we need. We don’t need somebody who cares about race.”

‘Uncommitted’ voters

Concerns about Harris’ support for Israel threaten to cast a shadow on her campaign in Michigan. Campaign speeches in Detroit have largely avoided the topic. 

At the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, calls for a Palestinian American speaker were unfulfilled despite support from the Michigan Democratic Party leader and the United Auto Workers, which embraced Harris on Labor Day in Detroit. 

Harris previously met with Dearborn leaders of the pro-ceasefire uncommitted movement during her campaign visit to Michigan. A group of college students briefly disrupted her rally in Romulus hours later. Harris’ national security advisory later said she won’t commit to an arms embargo. 

“Younger people are questioning Harris in terms of her policies and what she’s going to do about Palestine,” Scott, the Georgetown professor, said. “Some people are framing this issue as young people are unaware and not engaged. I think (young people) are questioning what the Democratic Party can offer.”

Detroit is culturally connected to neighboring cities with the largest percentage of Arab Americans in the country. Nearly 9% of Detroiters voted “uncommitted” in the February primary after Palestinian advocates quickly assembled a protest campaign. 

More than 101,600 Michigan primary voters cast ballots for “uncommitted,” which is enough to make some Democrats nervous. The last two presidential races were decided by 10,700 and 154,200 votes. 

Harrell said she’s trying to convince voters to advocate for Palestine while also holding up other issues that they find alignment with Harris on. 

“You’re not selling your soul and you’re not selling yourself short; don’t be a one-issue voter.” Harrell said. “We can’t afford that. Black women are always carrying the torch for other people’s oppression, we’re going to put ourselves on the line for others.”