FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 2, 2023
CONTACT: Heather Cabral, 202-550-6880, hcabral@faithinaction.org
WASHINGTON – Leaders with the largest faith-based grassroots organizing network reaffirmed their commitment to protecting democracy and expanding voting rights following the indictment of former President Donald Trump for conspiring to undermine the 2020 election, essentially attempting to rob the voice of millions of voters.
Noting the significance of the indictment in efforts to hold perpetrators of the January 6, 2021, insurrection accountable, the Rev. Alvin Herring, executive director of Faith in Action, in a statement, said, “These federal charges are the first step toward meaningful accountability more than two-and-a-half years after we witnessed the violence wrought by years of lies and hate-filled rhetoric from those occupying the highest offices in the land. Democracy is precious and accountability for those who planned and inspired the violence on January 6 better protects our nation’s foundation, not just as we head toward the 2024 election, but for generations.”
Herring continued, “In this moment of yet more unprecedented and historic developments, I am reminded of our collective call to be peacemakers – that we are required to act justly, with love and kindness, and walk with our God. Let me be clear, however, peacemaking is not a passive act, for there is no peace without justice, accountability or love. As people of faith, our voices are needed in this moment to continue the push for accountability for all the insurrectionists and those who would rob Americans of their sacred right to vote.”
Andrea Marta, executive director of Faith in Action Fund, added, “The actions of Trump, his co-conspirators and their supporters were – and continue to be – a direct threat to the democratic values at the heart of the nearly 2 million sacred conversations that we hosted during the 2020 election and the millions we’ve held since.”
Phyllis Hill, Faith in Action’s national organizing director and Georgia resident, said, “The vote is sacred. Trump and his conspirators attempted to rob us all of our votes to cling to power and push their white Christian nationalist agenda. But make no mistake, the effort to undermine the right to vote, allegedly, by the former president and his six conspirators extends to state efforts to do the same. Here in Georgia, while we await another Grand Jury decision related to the 2020 election, officials are preparing to purge more than 190,000 voters from the rolls. In Alabama, the governor and state legislature flat out ignored the Supreme Court ruling, creating yet another map that disenfranchises Black and brown voters. And in Florida, the current legislature continues to ignore the will of the voters and disenfranchise returning citizens who should have access to the ballot box following the 2018 passage of Amendment 4.”
Faith in Action, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary this fall, leads voter engagement work across the country. Through their Rise + Vote program, they educate and mobilize Black and brown voters — many of whom have long been shut out from the democratic process. Through this program and their 45 network federations across the country, they’ve reached millions of voters through relational grassroots organizing, phone banking, and community canvassing.
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