Highlighting the work of prominent black women in local and federal governments, Howard University and The Hill collaborated to host the Black Women in Politics event on Thursday March 21. 

During the event the women had the chance to share their journey, discuss what representation truly means, and the importance of Black women recognizing their power and using it to foster and push for change. 

The  event featured the high profile leaders Stacey Abrams and Representative Cori Bush, (D-Maryland), and other political advocates. 

Cheyanne M. Daniels, The Hill’s race and politics reporter, as well as creator and host of The Switch Up Podcast, moderated each segment and revealed the idea behind this event and her intentions for featuring lesser known politicians and activists.

“Black women supporting Black women is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and I wish we could see it every day. But because we don’t take the time to talk to Black women, we don’t see it.” Daniels said. “It got me thinking about who are the names we don’t know, which is why I wanted the panel discussion to show that there are multiple ways to be involved in politics.”

The Representation Matters panel included a bipartisan group of speakers: Gabrielle Wyatt, Roxy Ndebumadu, Adrianne Shropshire,  and Kimberley Klacik. 

The guests answered questions about if Black women were truly represented in politics, the responsibility to maintain and cultivate their positions in these spaces, and their role in empowering Black women in each of their fields. 

“What we care deeply about is creating a circle that is truly intergenerational to pass on this power that lives within us,”  Wyatt, founder of The Highland Project, said. “What’s our responsibility for continuing to cultivate a bench of leadership around us?”

Shropshire, executive director at BlackPAC,  listed how Black women across the country are concerned about Black maternal health, racism, gun violence, and college affordability, yet there are still a lot of things about politics that they don’t understand.  

“People feel not just disempowered, there’s a lot of shame…there’s a sense that they’re going to be judged for it,” she said.  “I think that part of our role at BlackPAC and other organizations like it is to make sure that we are providing information for people, that we’re talking this stuff through…we’re helping people understand not just the importance of not only elections but the importance of their participation, and the power that they do have.”

The speakers also validated the mistrust and anxiety Black young adults have toward electing government officials. They discussed the effects of a changing political landscape and youth involvement, and how it has impacted the perspective of a new generation of voters.

“You all don’t often see progress on these issues, or you’re seeing rights being rolled back right before our very eyes,” stated Shropshire. She explained that changing public policy and creating legislature takes time, but Black women still have an important role in this process. “Some of that though, I think is about…making sure we understand how things get done, where the interventions can happen, where to speed things up, and where to disrupt them.”  

Attendees left the event feeling empowered and with the motivation to get involved. Taylynn Sharp, a student at Georgetown University, expressed how she was eager to listen to what guests had to say about their political appetites, and connect with like minded individuals. 

“The fact that Black women have far too much potential, far too much interest, to not be involved in deeper levels…the fact that we have far too few at the local, at the state, at the citywide level, at the levels that impact your everyday lives!”

Daniels expressed how she wants this event to continue happening for years to come. “In my perfect ‘Cheyanne World,’ this would be something we could do…at least annually to keep reminding each generation of Black women that ‘Hey! We’re still here, and we’re still listening to you, and we still hear you.”