TRUTH TELLERS NATIONAL NIGHT OF SISTER TO SISTER SALON CONVERSATIONS HOST TOOLKIT Tuesday, October 16, :00 pm ET

Transcription

1 TRUTH TELLERS NATIONAL NIGHT OF SISTER TO SISTER SALON CONVERSATIONS HOST TOOLKIT Tuesday, October 16, :00 pm ET 1

2 If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right side up again! -Sojourner Truth Abolitionist and women s rights activist Sojourner Truth s words about the power of women s--and in particular Black women s--leadership are as relevant today as they were when she delivered them in her seminal 1851 speech Ain t I a Woman? As we move rapidly into the final stretch of 2018 midterm elections, her historic appeal continues to serve an urgent call for Black women to be truth tellers: for us to raise our voices, cast our ballots and flex our collective power to elect leaders who respect and support all Americans and embrace the existence and power of our diversity. As Black women, we have tremendous political capital. Nearly 16 million of us are eligible to vote, and 73 percent are registered. We had the highest voter turnout rates in of all groups in 2008 and 2012, and the second highest in Now, we need to turn our collective capital into strategic political actions and investments that create the election outcomes and leadership accountability we and our communities need. Our voice, our vote and our leadership matter, and the 2018 midterm elections offer a unique and increasingly critical opportunity for us to harness our political power and leadership potential from the voting booth to elected representation. That is why we are asking Black women across the country to host Truth Tellers: Sister to Sister Salon Conversations. An assembly of guests in such a room, especially an assembly, common during the 17th and 18th centuries, consisting of the leaders in society, art, politics, etc. On Tuesday, October 16 at 7:00 p.m. ET, Higher Heights Leadership Fund is gathering Black 2 women from across the country for a powerful evening. With your help, we are organizing over 100 salon conversations with the aim of elevating Black women s voice in the national political debate and ensuring strong, well-informed General Election turnout for early voting and at the polls on Tuesday, November 6. The salons will also help us continue building on a growing coalition of Black women across the country who are coming together to share knowledge and make a strategic impact on the 2018 election and beyond. As a salon conversation host, your gathering will be a part of Higher Heights ongoing #BlackWomenVote national effort to: n Increase our civic engagement and participation beyond Election Day n Explore issues that are important to Black women and our communities n Create a personalized voting plans for participants n Mobilize our networks to the polls With your help, Higher Heights can galvanize, organize and mobilize Black women s political power, giving them the tools to effectively engage, advocate and lead. Onward, Glynda C. Carr Co-Founders Kimberly Peeler-Allen

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT HIGHER HEIGHTS 4 TRUTH TELLERS: WHEN #BLACKWOMENVOTE 5 HOSTING A TRUTH TELLERS SISTER TO SISTER SALON 6 SALON PURPOSE & GOALS 7 SALON PRE-PLANNING 8 LOGISTICS & BUDGET 9 GUEST LIST 10 INVITATION COPY 11 SALON FORMAT 12 SALON EXECUTION 13 HOST SCRIPT (WHY WE GATHER) 13 GROUP ACTIVITIES 15 PARTICIPANT THANK YOU NOTES 16 WRAP UP, REPORT BACK & POST SALON

4 ABOUT HIGHER HEIGHTS Higher Heights, Higher Heights Leadership Fund (Higher Heights), a 501(c)3 organization, and its sister organization Higher Heights for America, a 501(c)4, is the only national organization providing Black women with a political home exclusively dedicated to harnessing their collective political power and leadership from the voting booth to elected office. Black women are most powerful when they move together. Higher Heights is mobilizing a fast-growing national network of Black women and allies by providing tools to amplify their voices, take action and organize their networks. We are creating the environment for Black women to run, win and lead. Here is a snapshot of Black women s political gains, activism and opportunities. Black women are increasingly running and winning n 20 Black women the most ever are serving in the U.S. House of Representatives. n The 2nd Black woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate is currently serving. n 13 more Black women are holding seats in state legislatures since n 7 Black women are serving as mayors of the 100 most populous U.S. cities compare to just 1 in Black women show up and show support n 16 million Black women are eligible to vote, and 73% are registered. n They had the highest voter turnout rate (70%) of all groups in 2008 and 2012, and the second highest (64%) in 2016 despite voter suppression laws that had significant impact on Black voter turnout. n Black women made up 17% of voters who cast ballots in the recent U.S. Senate special election in Alabama, but they account for less than 14% of the state s population. But, there is still much work to do n Black women are 7% of the population, yet they account for just 4% of all members of the House and 1% of the Senate. n Only 3 Black women currently hold a statewide office. n No Black woman has ever served as governor in our country s 242-year history. 4

5 Black women are most powerful when they move together. Truth Tellers: When #BlackWomenVote The 2018 #BlackWomenVote campaign is a nonpartisan voter-activism campaign powered by Higher Heights that has become the leading, independent and trusted voice for Black women leading up to and beyond Election Day. In addition to providing election-related information, the campaign provides Black women with news, commentary and tools that help them vote and and empower them to activate their networks to action leading up to and beyond Election Day. The program reaches Black women across the country--from teens who will be voting age in 2020 to college students to seniors-- and equips them to raise their voices, cast their votes and flex their collective electoral power. As a part the 2018 #BlackWomenVote campaign, Higher Heights is staging Truth Tellers: A National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations on Tuesday, October 16. During these events, Black women will gather in rooms and homes across the country to share their truths about the issues affecting them, their families and their communities; strategize how they can best to use their political power to address these concerns; and explore Black women s leadership potential. 5

6 SO YOU ARE HOSTING A TRUTH TELLERS SISTER TO SISTER SALON? #BLACKWOMENVOTE 6

7 SALON PURPOSE & GOALS We are excited that you will be gathering your network for a Truth Tellers: A National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations event on Tuesday, October 16th. This toolkit provides step-by-step instructions for everything you will need to organize and host what promises to be a powerful evening. Our goal with these salons is threefold: n To get participants committed to voting in the forthcoming 2018 general election and beyond; n To encourage Black women to see themselves as civic-engagement influencers who can motivate and help members of their networks become informed, consistent voters; and n To glean information from participants that will help us increase investment in Black women s political engagement and leadership. By the end of your salon conversation, your participants should have identified a set of issues and potential solutions that they would want elected officials to address and consider. Each participant should also have the tools and resources needed to talk with their network about the power of voting and mobilize them to the polls. Finally, each of your guests will be asked to complete a short survey and include it with their RSVP. Information from the survey and the worksheets completed during the salon will be included in Higher Heights post-election report outlining themes from the salon conversations and providing insight into participants subsequent Election Day participation. Those themes and the improved understanding of salon participants civic engagement will help inform and reiterate the need for greater, more strategic investment in Black women s voter engagement and leadership. Your guests will also receive a #BlackWomenVote toolkit, which provides information on voting and tips for activating their networks through face-to-face interactions and social media. 7

8 SALON PRE-PLANNING Included in this toolkit are the resources you need to organize and host your salon conversation. We can only do this work with partners like you, and we thank you for joining our efforts. WHO TO INVITE? To develop your invite list, consider gathering your girlfriends, sorority sisters, chapter sisters, neighbors, church members, work colleagues, your hairdresser, cousins, mom, grandmother, aunts, sisters and other women in your network. Depending on your venue, the optimal number of attendees is 25 guests and should be no more than 50. Your invitation list should be a little larger than your target to account for last-minute cancellations. CONSIDER A CO-HOST You can host the salon on your own or you can share the planning responsibility by asking someone to co-host. Having a friend to work with allows you to split up the planning responsibilities and expand your invitation list. CHOOSE A VENUE Salon conversations have been held in homes, small apartments, church basements, conference rooms and hair salons. The venue should be a private space that is comfortable, provides for large and breakout group discussions, and allows for attendees to mingle. BUDGET & LOGISTICS Hosting a salon does not require a large financial commitment. The costs associated include light refreshments you plan to provide, printing or copying of materials and name badges should you desire. Your expenses will vary depending on how many guests you are hosting, but remember the food and beverages are intended as a means to the conversation, so don t overspend. If possible, please have access to a laptop, tablet or smart tv to log in and watch the opening but if you do not have access to that technology in the space you will be in, please have access to a telephone with a speaker so you can dial into the webinar and hear the opening remarks. To help organize and support community building across salons we are using Mixr.net, a platform that allows hosts to invite guests to their salon through social media and as well as message to them easily before and after the salon as well as provide a uniform way for us to collect and track the number of participants in all of the salons. To create your group and Mixr, go to and click on the widget to get started. 1) Click the picture in the MixR widget to join the Truth Tellers Salon Hosts group on MixR 2) Register to join the group: a. When entering your interests, include Politics, Voting and African American Women b. Don t forget to upload a profile photo! 3) Now it s time to create your own group for your Sister Salon a. Click the Create a Group/Start a mixr button 8 b. Follow the simple instructions 4) Once you ve successfully created a group, set up a mixr for the Sister Salon you re hosting. a. Include the date, time and location, as well as any special instructions for the event. 5) Invite your guests you can use or share on social media 6) Your Salon guests will remain connected in your MixR group so you can continue the conversation, share information, and even organize future activities with them. They can also suggest ideas for events. The MixR team is available to help you at any time with questions marina@mixr.net or angela.gyetvan@mixr.net SALON FORMAT As you plan your salon, it is important to keep in mind that the format is designed to create an environment in which attendees feel comfortable, engaged and ready to work together. DO S & DON TS Do: n Invite a variety of people to foster a dynamic conversation; n Allow time for your guests to mingle before beginning the program; and n Task someone ahead of time with collecting each participant s worksheet for safekeeping. n Encourage your guests to Check their titles at the door. Every Black woman s story and experience is extremely valuable to this process. n Contact salons@higherheightsforamerica.org should you have questions or need clarity about information in the toolkit or executing the salon. Don t: n Overspend on refreshments and venue n #BlackWomenVote, surveys, toolkits and content herein are trademarked and copyrighted by Higher Heights and are to only be used as part of the national night of Sister to Sister Salon conversations REPORT BACK TO HIGHER HEIGHTS Higher Heights will be drawing from the worksheets and survey responses as we speak to the media and stake holders leading up to and immediately following Election Day. We ask that all salon worksheets be sent to the office by Friday, October 19th. They can be ed to salons@higherheightsforamerica.org in.pdf,.jpeg,.png or.tif format. All of the themes from the salon conversations and the engagement of salon participants will be compiled in a post-election report which will reiterate the need to invest deeply in Black women votes as early as possible to continue to expand their already impressive performance at the polls.

9 LOGISTICS & BUDGET PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING TO HELP PLAN YOUR SALON. Salon Location: Salon Host(s): Do you have access to a laptop, tablet, smart TV or telephone with speaker that will enable you to connect to salon welcome segment? Additional needs: SALON BUDGET Food & Beverage Printing (sign-in sheets and other materials) General Supplies (name badges, pens, notepads, etc) Misc. $ $ $ $ TOTAL $ # of People Invited: # of People RSVP d: # of People Attended: 9

10 GUEST LIST NAME ADDRESS PHONE NUMBER(S) 10

11 INVITATION COPY SUBJECT: Join me on Tuesday, October 16th for Truth Tellers: A National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations exploring Black women s political power Sojourner Truth once said, If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right side up again! Did you know that Black women represent a growing economic and voter base? We vote in higher numbers than our male counterparts. We influence how 85 cents to every dollar is spent in our community. We volunteer and donate our time and money to community organizations and our churches. Yet, according to a study from the University of California, the U.S. political system ignores Black women s voices in political decisions more than any other group. By showing our power at the polls to support issues we care about we will help make sure Black women s voices, votes and leadership matter. At this pivotal time in our nation s history, Higher Heights is convening Truth Tellers National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations on Tuesday, October 16th at 7:00 p.m. ET to, in Sojourner s words, turn the world right side up again. The Truth Tellers National Night of Sister to Salon Conversations will convene 100 conversations simultaneously to discuss the challenges and opportunities to increase our civic engagement and mobilize our networks to the polls this November and in future elections. I have joined Higher Heights efforts to engage and mobilize Black women just like us by hosting a salon on October 16th, and I want to make sure we are a part of this national effort and conversation to elevate Black women s voices in the national political debate. Join me at at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, October 16th for this urgent conversation in our community. After you RSVP, please complete the short survey found at bit.ly/bwv_presalon to help us create a baseline for the level of civic engagement of our participants. I hope you will join me for this timely and important conversation. Please let me know if you can attend by (INSERT DATE). Sincerely, (YOUR NAME) 11

12 SALON FORMAT Truth Tellers National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations being held on Tuesday, October 16th will be a two-hour event opened by welcome remarks by the Higher Heights co-founders and special guests to frame this special evening. The opening conversation will be broadcast on AnyMeeting.com and through a dial in conference call number. After the introduction presentation, the conversations will be turned over to our hosts to facilitate the small group work. Remember that at the end of the salon your group should have identified a set of issues and solutions that you will submit to Higher Heights. Here is a sample schedule for a salon conversation. Guests Arrive: Welcome and Introductions: Small Group Instructions: Group Activity: Report Back: Offer GOTV Tools: Wrap-Up: 12 As guests arrive have them sign in and mingle with other arriving guests. You can have the refreshments served or give instructions for guests to self-serve. (15 Minutes) The national welcome will begin at 7:20 pm ET. The welcome will be broadcast on AnyMeeting.com, an internet based webinar platform that does not require any downloads. It can be logged into on a laptop, tablet or smart TV by going to The webinar can also be accessed by phone if you are not able to login by dialing access code: #. Higher Heights co-founders and special guests will provide a welcome and framing for the evening. (20 Minutes) A host/facilitator will read the instructions for the small group work. (3 Minutes) Attendees should be split into groups of 4-6 people, depending on the total number of attendees. The groups should be given minutes to complete the group activity. Instruct the groups that they should pick a scribe (someone to capture the group responses); a reporter (someone who will present the summary of the groups responses); and a timekeeper (someone to keep the group on track and moving through the exercise). (25 Minutes) Reconvene the larger group and have the reporter from each group present their group responses. (20 Minutes) After all of the groups have presented, identify a scribe to take down the larger group discussion. The facilitator/host should then lead the larger group in prioritizing the issues and solutions presented. (20 Minutes) Provide your guests with information on the Higher Heights BlackWomenVote.com website, where they can link to local voter registration resources and find out where and the deadlines for registration. They also in most cases can see sample ballots and find out about ballot initiatives and candidates. You may also want to provide information on any voter ID laws, voter eligibility requirements (such as whether formerly incarcerated individuals can vote in your state) and discuss a plan to help those who may need it get to the polls. Using the Staying Engaged sheet as a guide, (page 17), the host/facilitator will discuss next steps.

13 SALON EXECUTION HOST SCRIPT (WHY WE GATHER) Black women are known for being reliable voters. Nearly 16 million are eligible to vote, and 73 percent of us from that group are registered. We had the highest voter turnout rate of all groups in 2008 and 2012, and the second highest in 2016 despite voter registration laws that prevented many of us from going to the polls in places like North Carolina, Wisconsin and Florida. In spite of efforts to dilute our voting power, recent elections underscore not only how strong it is, but also how critical our on-the-ground strategy is to bringing home wins for candidates. For example, we played a pivotal role in helping Doug Jones win Alabama s open U.S. Senate seat. We delivered progressive governors to Virginia and New Jersey in And, of course, we helped Barack Obama win the White House twice. But before we begin tonight s conversation, let s take a moment to consider whether we are getting a fair return on our investment in the form of politicalleadership parity and policies that address our concerns. Did you know? Black women s spending power is estimated at over $565 billion. Yet, we earn just 64 cents for every dollar earned by a white man 1 This directly and negatively impacts our wealth. Did you know? That although we ve surpassed or matched all other racial and gender subgroups in voter turnout, only three Black women are currently elected to statewide executive office. Twenty Black women are serving in U.S. House of Representatives, and only one is serving in the U.S. Senate. There are just seven Black woman currently serving as the mayor of one of our 100 largest U.S. cities. 2 Did you know? Black women die during pregnancy and childbirth at three to four times the rate for white women--and that we re twice as likely to die from cervical cancer as our white counterparts with the disease. 3 These numbers are telling and shocking. Black women are fully engaging in the economic system, yet we re woefully underpaid for our labor. We re turning up and delivering political wins, but our power at the polls isn t translating as readily as it should into policies that improve our situations and resulting in more of us holding elected office. This evening Higher Heights is convening Black women from across the country for a national conversation and call to action. Truth Tellers: A National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations will allow us to explore and strategize how we can begin to change this dynamic. This is our work for the evening. Higher Heights wants to hear from Black women just like us. What are the issues that affect our families, communities, and nation? What are our thoughts on the best way to address these issues? What are the challenges to exercising your right to vote and mobilizing your network to the polls? What are strategies or messages that Black women can use to organize our networks to the polls? What can Black women do collectively/individually to make sure #BlackWomenVote in 2018 and beyond? There are no right or wrong answers, just honest ones. We want you to imagine an America in which Black women are full participants in making the decisions that affect our lives, communities, and nation. 13

14 As you know, Higher Heights requested that each participant complete a survey about their feelings about voting and previous voting experiences prior to coming to this salon. In addition to gathering discussions from this evening s salons, you will be surveyed again after the salon and after Election Day to ascertain the impact tonight s conversation on your engagement in the election. This information will be compiled salon by salon and will be highlighted in a report describing the recurring themes from the salon conversations as well as the sentiments and engagement of salon participants in the November election. Higher Heights will compile our responses from tonight and the surveys we will complete over the next several weeks to help illustrate how Black women can raise their collective voice at the voting booth and hold their elected leaders accountable at every level of government when there is deep investment in educating and mobilizing Black women. We are going to start by taking some time individually to write down our thoughts and then break into small groups to discuss. Each group will work together to determine what are the strongest themes emerging from your discussion that you will report back to the entire group. We will reconvene as a full group to discuss and prioritize a set of top issues and barriers, opportunities, and solutions that this salon will report back to Higher Heights. Higher Heights is working to prove that when Black women understand the power that they have to influence elections and are provided the tools to mobilize their networks to the polls, our Democracy thrives. nnn 1. Data from National Women s Law Center. July Data from the Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute for Politics,Rutgers University. 3.R.A. Williams, Cardiovascular disease in African American women: a healthcare disparities issue, 2009 in Journal of National Medical Association 101(6): Pub Med, PMID:

15 GROUP ACTIVITIES Break up into groups of 4-6 people, depending on the total number of attendees and work together to answer the following set of questions. Groups have minutes to complete the group activity. Each group should identify a scribe (someone to write down the group responses) and a reporter (someone who will present the summary of the groups responses). 1). What are the top three issues facing our community? 2). Have you talked to Black women about voting in the upcoming election? Were they receptive? Why or why not? 3). What are strategies or messages that Black women can use to organize our networks to the polls? 4). What can Black women do collectively/ individually to make sure #BlackWomenVote in 2018 and beyond? 15

16 PARTICIPANT THANK YOU NOTES Thank You! I think you would agree that our Truth Tellers: A National Night of Sister to Sister Salon Conversations was powerful! Your participation was greatly appreciated and extrememly valuable. This conversation clearly reinforced the need to not only harness Black women s collective political power to address the inequities that exist in our communities, but also the need to continuously educate Black women and provide them with the tools they need to mobilize their networks to the polls in each and every election to hold our elected officials accountable to the priorities of our communities. Please take a moment to complete the survey found here to help Higher Heights measure the impact of our conversation and best support civic engagement. I hope you will join me in supporting Higher Heights and the #BlackWomenVote initiative by making a contribution at or hosting your own salon conversation with your extended network in the months to come. Thank you. (YOUR NAME) 16

17 POST SALON & STAYING ENGAGED WRAP UP Be sure to thank your hosts and attendees for their participation. We also ask that you send your guests our post salon survey so that we can accurately record participants feelings about the salon and voting. The link can be found here and it has also been added to the sample thank you note on the next page. Please feel free to customize the note to your liking. REPORT BACK Share the details and information from your salon with Higher Heights and add to the voices of thousands of Black women across the country. We ask that you share the following: n Completed Salon Logistics Sheet (page 9) n Copies of Salon Sign-In Sheets n Copies of each groups scribe salon worksheets Please share all requested information with Higher Heights team by Friday, October 19th. SUBMIT YOUR INFORMATION TO HIGHER HEIGHTS VIA BY MAIL: Attach copies of the items listed above and them to salons@higherheightsforamerica.org Mail copies of the items listed above to: Higher Heights 147 Prince Street, Suite 34 Brooklyn, NY LEADING UP TO ELECTION DAY Higher Heights will be providing weekly actions for salon participants to engage in leading up to Election Day. The actions will be disseminated via and social media and encourage conversation and actions to mobilize as many in the participants networks as possible to the polls. #BlackWomenVote #TruthTeller Salon participants will be encouraged to watch and participate in our Pre-Election Day virtual Sunday Brunch which will be broadcast on Facebook Live on Sunday, October 28th. AFTER ELECTION DAY Higher Heights wants to know how we did. In the days after the election, Truth Teller National Night of Salon participants will be sent a short survey to measure their participation in voting, the participation of their network and their feelings about participating. Participants will also be encouraged to connect with local partner organizations and take steps in the weeks and months to come to continue their civic engagement. 17

18 Follow the Campaign #BlackWomenVote HigherHeights HigherHeights4 HigherHeights4 BlackWomenVote.com Ph. (646) Higher Heights 147 Prince Street, Suite 34 Brooklyn, NY