Liam Conner
Atlanta and Detroit – President Biden began his speech at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s “Fight for Freedom Fund” dinner in Detroit on Sunday by declaring himself a “life member” of the NAACP.
Several states further south, in Atlanta, Biden began his Sunday morning commencement address at Morehouse College — a historically black men’s liberal arts college — with scripture.
“The Scriptures say that the prayers of a righteous man avail much,” the president said in Atlanta, as he told the story of the Reverend Richard C. Coulter, a former slave from Atlanta who helped create Morehouse College.
“You all know the story, but the rest of the world doesn’t, and they should,” he added.
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images
The weekend’s swing through Georgia and Michigan, where Biden made direct overtures to large crowds of black voters, came as the campaign tried to revitalize its support for black voters in the face of lagging poll numbers and under-six months before the election.
The Biden campaign says it invested more than $1 million in targeted ad buys on Black-owned media this month and prioritized interviews on Black radio stations. But while the president still records overwhelming support from black voters in polls, his support in that crucial voting bloc has declined slightly.
In a March CBS News Poll in Georgia, 82% of black voters said they would vote for Biden, compared with 88% in a 2020 exit poll. In an April CBS News poll in Michigan, Biden won the support of 77% of black voters , with other third-party options on the ballot.
Biden touts record number of black voters and provokes Trump in Detroit
Throughout his closing events in Detroit — a campaign stop at a Black-owned business and speech at the NAACP dinner — Biden made a point of pitching his record to Black voters.
He cited the $16 billion his administration has invested in historically black colleges and universities, the low black unemployment rate, its efforts to reduce the price of prescription drugs and actions to alleviate student debt.
“I’ve forgiven a lot of debt for people who have college debt — and billions of dollars of it — so people can start their lives over,” he said at the CRED Café in Detroit on Sunday afternoon.
“The guy we’re running against wants to support all the perspectives, all the progress we’ve made,” he added, referring to Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and former president.
Sonya Ellis, a 69-year-old Detroit teacher who saw Biden speak at the NAACP dinner, said she had her student loans forgiven because of his policies. But she said she was “very nervous” about Trump winning in November and felt Biden could be stronger on foreign policy.
“I think Trump voters will vote. I know people who are Democrats, who say they’re not going to vote,” she said.
Over the weekend, Biden thanked Black voters for helping him win in 2020 and said they would be the reason Trump “will be a loser again.”
During his speech to the NAACP, Biden focused on contrasts between himself and Trump that could appeal to black voters. After touting his nomination of Kentaji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to the U.S. Supreme Court, Biden asked the crowd of more than 4,600 attendees at the NAACP dinner if Trump won a second term: “Who do you think he’ll put in office?” ” Supreme Court? Do you think he will put anyone who has a brain in?”
Later, as he watched as Trump said he would pardon the protesters convicted on Jan. 6, Biden asked the crowd to consider a hypothesis.
“What do you think he would have done on January 6th if black Americans had stormed the Capitol?” Biden said, to several groans of agreement.
Robert Oscar Williams, a 49-year-old black voter who saw Biden’s comments in Detroit, believes that while the president has made his administration’s record clear, he would have liked to have heard more about his plans for a second term.
“More people want to hear tangible details. They want to know: ‘What will I get for my vote?’ Not just a good speech,” said Oscar Williams.
“The black vote consolidated his victory last (time). It would be unintelligent not to talk about this vote,” he added.
In Morehouse, Biden says his heart is “broken” over Gaza
During his commencement address at Morehouse College, Biden frequently addressed themes of struggle, faith and democracy.
He linked restrictive election laws and attacks on election workers to “what happens to you and your family when old ghosts in new clothes take power.” He has repeatedly questioned whether American democracy “really works” for black citizens.
“What is democracy if a trail of broken promises still leaves black communities behind?” asked Mr. Biden.
Christian Monterrosa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Later, in his remarks, he returned to this issue to talk about Gaza.
“I also know that some of you ask, ‘What is democracy if we can’t stop the wars that break out and break our hearts?’” Biden noted. He went on to say what is “happening in Gaza and IsraelIt’s heartbreaking”, calling it “one of the most difficult and complicated problems in the world”, and called for a two-state solution and an immediate ceasefire – which received notable applause.
The Israeli military operation in Gaza, which the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health says has killed more than 34,000 people, has spurred numerous university attacks. “camps” and protests, as well as disruptions to graduation events. Although there was a protest outside the Morehouse campus, there were no major interruptions during Mr. Biden’s speech.
Instead, protesters took a quieter approach: Some students turned their chairs the other way, facing away from the president, while others draped Palestinian flags or scarves over their graduation robes. And throughout Biden’s speech, teachers on stage held up a flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to express displeasure with the administration’s response to that country’s civil war.
Christian Monterrosa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Yolanda Hutchins, a 55-year-old Democratic voter in Atlanta, said Biden is “annoying a lot of people right now with what’s happening with the genocide in Palestine.”
“It’s something I hear every day. I hear about it on social media. I talk about it and discuss it with family and friends,” she said.
Pro-Palestinian protesters were also present outside the NAACP dinner in Detroit. Bill Osborne, a 64-year-old Democrat based in Detroit, said he believes Gaza resonates most with Arab Americans and younger black voters who “denounce the injustice they believe Israel is inflicting on Gaza.”
“But if you look at the protesters outside, there weren’t many black protesters. I wouldn’t say it’s a make-or-break issue for black voters; I think it’s more the alienation they may feel.” he said.
