This last weekend before the election was crammed with get-out-the-vote efforts in Black neighborhoods across Philly — many spearheaded by the faith-based community.
by Lynette Hazelton
Updated on Nov 7, 2022, 5:00 a.m. ET
Black voters enthusiastically hit the streets to increase Black voter turnout through what collectively became known as “souls to the polls.” One particularly impactful event was Mother Bethel AME church pastor Rev. Mark Kelly Tyler’s Black Bikers Vote ride, where more than 100 bikers coming from as far as New York and Virginia took part. They traveled a route through Philadelphia where voter turnout has been historically low.
This is a perfect opportunity for motorcycle enthusiasts, like me, to fuse their passion for riding with something purposeful like voter awareness.” It isn’t that motorcades are new, Tyler explained, but that motorcycles generate excitement, especially among Black men who are less likely to vote than Black women. According to the U.S. Census, there is an eight-percentage point voter turnout gap between Black women at 55% and Black men at 47%.
