PERCOLATING THE VOTE!

by James “Jimmy” Hills

Today’s Java wasn’t really about campaign pitches.

Yes, it was Election Day. Yes, candidates were literally moving from polling location to polling location. And yes, I gave each of them a little time to tell you why they believed they deserved your vote.

But I wanted a bigger conversation about democracy, voting, civic participation and, particularly, the Black vote.

Because before we talk about who wins an election, we have to talk about whether people are actually participating in one.

District Attorney Kevin Hayden, State Senate candidate LaToya Gayle and former District Attorney Rachael Rollins all stopped by the Java Cafe this morning. Different races, different politics and different experiences, but everybody agreed on one thing: go vote.

And for me, this was another example of usl doing our job by creating a space where our community can hear directly from people seeking office, ask questions, understand what is at stake and, most importantly, stay engaged.

This time, we didn’t tell you who to vote for. We do want you to VOTE!!!

Hayden talked about the sacrifices Black people endured simply to gain access to the ballot and said that, with democracy under attack and racism surging, voting and civic engagement are even more important.

“If we are not voting and if we are not civically engaged, we can't possibly expect that change to come,” he said.

Gayle brought it down to everyday life. You don’t have to love politics, and you don’t even have to like politicians, but I bet you care about your neighborhood. You care about housing, schools, public safety, childcare, your utility bill and whether your family can afford to stay in the community you call home.

Voting helps determine who gets put in positions to make those decisions and who we then get to hold accountable.

Gayle also said something Black voters need to understand about the inside game of politics: campaigns pay attention to people who vote. Political power pays attention to political participation.

“You count, you matter,” she said. “Today is a day you get to pick your starting lineup.”

Rollins was equally direct when I asked specifically about Black and brown voters.

“We are always the canary in the coal mine,” she said.

Her point was rooted in history. Policies and systems that eventually impact everybody have repeatedly hit Black communities first and harder, and that is why this moment matters.

Across this country, voting rights and access to the ballot are being challenged. Democracy itself is being tested. Massachusetts is different, and we are not experiencing some of the same attacks happening in other states, but we should never get comfortable enough to take any of this for granted.

Rights remain strongest when people actually use them.

And there was something happening right here in Suffolk County that deserves attention: the entire field for Suffolk County District Attorney is Black.

Kevin Hayden. Rachael Rollins. Linda Champion.

A Black man and two Black women competing to become the chief prosecutor of Suffolk County.

Whatever your choice in that race, stop for a second and recognize that.

Hayden called it something that “ought to be celebrated.” Rollins talked about being proud that, regardless of the outcome, Suffolk County would have a person of color leading the office. And Gayle, although running in a different race, called that type of representation “a beautiful thing” and said she hoped it demonstrated progress.

And it does. But representation does not mean agreement.

Black candidates are not all the same, Black voters are not all the same, and somebody looking like us does not mean we stop asking questions. Representation does not replace accountability.

Each candidate still has to tell us what they plan to do with the power we are asking them to hold.

Hayden pointed to his record as incumbent, including public safety, reducing violent crime, community engagement, supporting victims and expanding diversion.

Rollins pointed to her experience as both Suffolk County District Attorney and U.S. Attorney and argued that experience makes her ready to lead the office again from day one.

And Champion’s presence on that ballot completes something that would have been hard to imagine through much of Suffolk County’s history: no matter who wins this race, a Black person will be Suffolk County District Attorney.

That is something worth acknowledging, but it should not make us complacent.

Progress is not permanent, and that may be the bigger message from today’s cup. We can celebrate Black political representation while also understanding that Black voting power should never be taken for granted. We can live in Massachusetts and still pay attention to what is happening to voting rights across this country. We can be frustrated with politics and still participate in democracy, because sitting an election out does not remove politics from your life.

The decisions are still going to be made. Budgets will still be passed. Prosecutors will still prosecute. Schools will still be funded. Housing policy will still be written. Public safety strategies will still be implemented.

Somebody is still going to choose that starting lineup, and the question is whether you helped choose it.

Stephen Pina unexpectedly joined the conversation later in the show while recovering from surgery, and celebrating his birthday, and he made the point plainly:

“you can’t continuously say you want change while refusing to participate in selecting the people who have the power to make it.”

That point carries even more weight when we remember how hard Black people fought just to have the right to participate at all.

So not this time, I’m not telling you who to vote for.

What I am saying is: learn the candidates, question them, challenge them, vote your interests, vote your community, and vote your conscience. Then, after the election is over, hold whoever wins accountable.

That is what civic engagement is supposed to look like.

Today’s conversations with Kevin Hayden, LaToya Gayle and Rachael Rollins were important. The historic all-Black Suffolk County DA field is important. Stephen Pina jumping into the conversation to talk about why voting matters was important too.

But the biggest story is still us: our participation, our voice, and our responsibility to stay engaged.

That is what the Java Cafe is supposed to help facilitate, and on a day like today, I believe our platform is doing its job.

Truth in the cup, information you can use, and a community that stays engaged, especially at a time when democracy and voting rights are being challenged across this country, and none of us can afford to take our voice, or our VOTE for granted.