November 6, 2020: We’ve got a lot of feelings right now.

Our spirits are bruised, our anxiety high. We bear the scars of generations of trauma, the legacy of white supremacy and patriarchy. They drive us to continue to fight for justice and equity, but they also make weeks like this very painful.

We see you, hear you, and are with you.

In high-stakes elections like these, we can see undeniable proof of the persistence of racism. We see efforts to deprive us of our constitutional right to have our voices heard and our votes counted. It is a painful reminder that the past is not the past, and of how far we still have to go.

Still we are incredibly proud of the amazing organizing work that our members, allies, and community have done in so many parts of the nation that has led to many victories.

We want to give a special shout-out to Black women-led organizations that went all out and made a huge difference in getting out every vote and making sure every vote counts in this election.

Racial justice was widely mentioned as a motivator for newly and re-politicized voters after Black Lives Matter and allied groups got 26 million people in the streets this summer. This kind of movement from the streets to the polls would never have happened without the awesome power of Black women.

As this week winds down, we continue to await final results for not only the presidential race but also several Senate races, state level races, and local and state ballot initiatives. We would love to take a moment to celebrate some historic wins, such as:

Representation that matters.

We’re seeing a number of firsts across the South and at the federal level for Black women and Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and other LGBTQ people of color, including:

  • At the federal level, Mondaire Jones (New York’s 17th District) and Ritchie Torres (New York’s 15th District) are the first Black gay members of Congress. Torres will also be the first Afro-Latinx person to serve in Congress.
  • In Georgia, Kim Jackson is the state’s first openly LGBTQ state senator, representing District 41.
  • In Florida, Michele Raynor is the state’s first Black queer woman to join the state legislature, representing District 70 in the Florida House.
  • In Tennessee, Torrey Harris is the state’s first openly LGBTQ member of the state legislature, representing District 71 in the state’s House.
  • In Oklahoma, Mauree Turner is the state’s first nonbinary state legislator, as well as the state’s first Muslim state legislator, representing the District 88.
  • In Delaware, Sarah McBride will be the nation’s first openly transgender state senator.
  • In Kansas, Stephanie Byers is the state’s (and the Midwest’s) first openly transgender legislator and the nation’s first Indigenous trans person elected to a state legislator.
  • In Vermont, Taylor Small is the state’s first openly transgender member of the state’s House.
  • Cori Bush will be the first Black woman to represent Missouri in Congress.

Wins on PWN policy agenda issues.

Reproductive Rights, Safety and Justice

  • In Colorado, voters rejected Proposition 115, a ballot measure that would have banned abortion at 22 weeks with no exceptions and criminalized medical professionals who provided care for people seeking abortions.

Economic Justice

  • Florida becomes the 8th state to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.
  • Colorado voters approved Proposition 118, a ballot measure requiring employers to provide 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave.

Drug Reform/Criminal Justice

  • Oregon will be the first state to decriminalize personal possession of all drugs.
  • Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota voters approved the legalization of recreational marijuana.  

Voting Rights

  • Colorado voters approved Proposition 113, bringing Colorado into the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact.
  • California voters approved to restore the voting rights of persons convicted with felonies who are on parole.

We must also acknowledge that there were policies passed in this election that go against everything we stand for, such as Amendment 1 in Louisiana, which would make abortion illegal in the event that the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

We have every intention of continuing to fight as we always have, especially at the state level, where so many of the decisions that affect our daily lives are made. We encourage you to join us–a good place to start is by participating in our upcoming State Legislative Advocacy webinar series, kicking off Wednesday, November 18, at 3pm EST. Register here.

We are sending you all much love, appreciation, and gratitude today as final results come in. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for, and we will continue pushing forward until we live in the world we envision and know is possible.