For Immediate Release
May 19, 2024
New Georgia Project Action Fund
Simran Jadavji, Strategic Communications Manager
[email protected], (646) 673-4191
New Georgia Project Action Fund Condemns Violent Suppression of Peaceful Protest at Morehouse College Commencement
(Atlanta, GA) – New Georgia Project Action Fund released the following statement following the violent, unnecessary arrests of peaceful protesters at President Biden’s commencement address at Morehouse College.
“What we watched unfold at Morehouse College this morning was unconscionable. Students and faculty at one of our country’s preeminent HBCUs were violently thrown to the ground, dragged out, and arrested for deigning to hold President Biden accountable through peaceful protest. New Georgia Project Action Fund condemns the actions of Morehouse administration and the White House for revoking these students’ rights by violent fiat.
‘As the mother of a Morehouse student and a staunch defender of our democracy, I am appalled,’ said NGPAF Chief Executive Officer, Kendra Cotton. ‘Morehouse is the center of Black male excellence, and I sent my son there thinking that, on campus, he would be free of the risks to his safety he faces everyday as a Black man in this country. Clearly, I was wrong. Knowing that he could be thrown in jail simply for speaking truth to power on his own college campus goes against everything I believe in and against what living in a democracy is all about. Dissent is not comfortable, and the point of protest is disruption of the status quo. That’s how change happens. We learned that from Morehouse’s most famous graduate, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, and no one can say that he was wrong for fighting to change the status quo. I applaud the brave students who engaged in non-violent protest today. They had an audience with the President of the United States of America who is trying to court their vote to win a second term. They rightfully seized this opportunity to let the President know what he needs to do for them, and I commend them. Hats off to the graduates.’
At a time when President Biden’s presence at Morehouse was already seen as pandering by some, today’s events should be instructive for the President and his campaign moving forward. He must do even more, now, to win the votes of Black Georgians, especially Black men, many of whom were already considering staying home in November.
‘As the President looks to Georgia voters to help deliver his reelection victory, he better keep Black voters—and Black men—in Georgia in mind. What was going to be a steep hill to climb here has now become a mountain for Joe Biden,’ said NGPAF Chief Organizing and Field Officer, Keron Blair. ‘On a day where the President should have been laying out his plan to support the futures of these Morehouse graduates, he, instead, demonstrated his unwillingness to listen to their very legitimate concerns. What happened today will not only hurt him with Black voters in Georgia but with Black voters around the country. Black people are paying attention, and the President now has a lot of ground to make up if he wants Black folks to turn out for him.’
NGPAF will always fight for the right to peaceful protest and dissent; these are core pillars of a healthy democracy. We will also always fight for Black Americans’ concerns to be taken seriously by those in power, whether that’s elected officials, candidates for office, or college administrations. As we continue to carve our way out of the systemic racism our country was founded on, that is how progress has and continue to happen in this country.”
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