Western Wayne County NAACP host Labor and Community Luncheon

In combination with International Fuller Women Network, on Thursday October 17, 2024, at Region 1A, community leaders gathered to converse on a variety of topics. This upcoming election season has brought many together.

Moderators – Darwin Griffin, Labor and Industry Chair and Pastor Velma Overman, Community Chair

Panelist – Assad Turfe, Wayne County Deputy Executive, Jerry King, Pres. MI. & Metro Chapter A.P.R.I., Laura Dickerson, Director Region 1A, Kevin Tolbert, Democratic Chair, Allen Wilson, Romulus City Council Wayne County Commissioner Elect, Cassy Jones-McBryde, Executive Director of Intl. Fuller Woman Network & the Michigan Chamber for Reproductive Justice

Once the attendees fellowship received photo opportunities and found their seats the program began. It was a wonderful turnout. The introduction starts with encouraging guests to sign up for the Western Wayne County NAACP. If you want to partake in the community, volunteer, network with like-minded people – civil rights and social justice. Their mission is to advance policies and practices that will accelerate wellbeing, education and economic security.

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One thing United States Representative Rashida Tlaib compliments the Western Wayne Chapter for, "It tries to make sure people are participating in their democracy," she said. The chapter has done a great job ensuring residents are registered to vote and informed. She adds "I say all this to you that there are people in your backyard that you need to engage in...but you also need to understand that our work doesn't stop on November 5th, it has to continue on November 6th. All elections are vital and need involvement. She tells the audience, "They need to understand the power they have in the community."

Sisters on a Roll Café catered the lunch. The table is full of good food. A delightful dessert spread of cupcakes and pies, salad, potatoes, seasonal chicken, tender ribs, cooked to perfection corn, vegan options, and a variety of drinks across the table; lemonade, tea, coffee, and fountain drinks all available.

As the guest settles into their seats, the conversation with the panelist starts. Highlighting the opportunity of simply having this engaging conversation. The four key topics in discussion are voter suppression and engagement, misinformation and disinformation, Youth Engagement, and threats to workers' rights.

The moderator Darwin Griffin asks the question or give the topic and allows the panelist to expound.

As the panelist stated, in their own words that voter suppression takes on many forms. King says, "The most important thing is the misinformation about your rights." Wilson adds, "There's a lot of misinformation out there, it's overwhelming, and people believe its because if a lie is allowed to fester it becomes the truth in people's mind."

Wayne County Deputy Executive, Assad Turfe shares his first-hand experience of the misinformation. He is an Arabic American who has witness misinformation about V.P. Harris. Members of his community are receiving messages that Vice President Harris is in support of Isreal and his Jewish friends are receiving messages that she is in support of Palestine.

Turfe says, "This is being done to misinform the voter, to cause confusion and to divide. What we need to be doing is working together and ensuring that we have accurate information out there." He adds, "It's very dangerous what they are doing, they're trying to divide, and you know the old saying is 'If you can't convince them, confuse them' and that's exactly what's happening."

Resolutions and proactive ways to beat this are discussed. These tactics are used repeatedly. Tolbert gives a great analogy about Beverly Hills Cop banana trick, stating, "we cannot fall for the banana in the tail pipe." Jones- McBryde states "They always put the weight of democracy on Black people, we can not be the responsible party for saving democracy and the greatest casualties of the same democracy, so we need to make sure that we talk in the way that we need to talk who's responsible for our communities."

As the luncheon persists the topics dove deeper. When the panel is asked about worker rights Dickerson states "Let's be clear, there is a threat on labor, there has been a threat on labor." Allen adds, "Unions fight for wages, benefits, improved conditions of employment, that's what a labor union is all about." How many of you can attest to witnessing union strikes at least once a year. As a state and metro area with bountiful unions, those rights matter to numerous voters here.

The questions soon open for the audience, during that time Laura says, "Our education-if we want to make sure we get the millennials we have to educate them, but education starts with legislation, and we need to make sure we get the right people elected." Applause burst into the crowd and a brief discussion about the education system happens. The audience oldest member, Doriscine Wesley, gave a strong message ending with, "I'm tired of fighting, but I can't stop." The 72-year-old lady was awarded during the event.

The award ceremony concludes in the afternoon. A community impact, labor impact and industry impact award. The honorees are Doriscine Wesley, Dwayne Walker and C. Paschal Eze. Plenty of photos are being taken. Hugs, handshaking and seeing you later are seen and heard throughout the room. The afternoon ended on a great note with a needed chat.