Working together works! - The three LIUNA Caucuses (AA, Women, Latino) are very effective when working together on joint projects. With the 2020 election so critical for all LIUNA members, caucus leaders reviewed several organizational plans focused on supporting voter engagement. In early September, caucus leaders pledged joint monetary support to the National NAACP Civic Engagement Program. Subsequently, LIUNA AA Caucus members worked with the National NAACP Civic Engagement Program in battleground states to effect change in the November election. Through a grant process, caucus members developed separate strategy frameworks to work with NACCP state conferences and/or branches in five of the 12 battleground states the NAACP focused on to increase voter participation in Black and Latino communities. The states targeted and caucus contacts were as follows:
Ohio NAACP Cincinnati Branch LIUNA VP Robert Richardson
Michigan NAACP Detroit Branch Brother Mike Aaron
Florida NAACP Martin County Branch Brother Willie Cardenas
Florida NAACP Miami Branch Brother Richard Quincoces
Pennsylvania NAACP PA State Chapter LIUNA VP Sam Staten/ LIUNA AA Caucus President Ryan N. Boyer
Working through the LIUNA Minority Advancement Department and Jamal Watkins, NAACP Vice President of Civic Engagement, caucus members partnered with their respective NAACP entities to support a hybrid volunteer- virtual relational organizing campaign to reach potential voters by November 3, 2020. While different in each state, activities included planning and executing voter mobilization/GOTV, voting rights protection, voter education and voting rights advocacy work. African Americans turned out in record numbers to cast their vote for new leadership. The LIUNA AA Caucus is proud of the work done with the NAACP. Overall NAACP reported sending 16.5M texts, 675K telephone calls, 400K emails, 4.5M pieces of mail, 18M+impressions on social media as well as tv ads and radio play. Equally as important, the partnership strengthened bonds between our LIUNA Locals, LIUNA AA Caucus and their local NAACP branches to foster enhanced community and civic engagement projects in the future.
