Culture | November 2nd, 2020

20 HBCU Students Voice Why They are Voting

By: Dejania Oliver, Kailyn Rhone & Mia Uzzell

As the presidential election nears its climax, people all around the country are encouraging others to vote in what some have coined “the election of our lives.” Amongst them are HBCU students who feel the stakes are higher than ever. Discussions about the Black community have been at the forefront of the presidential debates, making these students all the more aware of what the outcome of this election means for them and their schools. 

HBCU students have the universities they are forever indebted to on the line. The federal government has never fortified funding security for historically black colleges and universities; oftentimes they are punted to the margins of policy concerns during legislative sessions. With the first-ever HBCU candidate for a major party on one ticket and an incumbent Republican administration that touts a recent executive order that could deem all HBCUs ineligible for federal funding on the other, these students are nervously awaiting a new shift come Nov. 3.

In previous elections, HBCU students have turned up to their local polling stations on Election Day to make their voices known, heard and counted. However, a process that should be easygoing usually results in never-ending lines, miscommunication or, unfortunately, people being turned away from voting. In the upcoming 2020 election, HBCU students plan to keep their Generation Z counterparts informed on voter education and discriminatory restrictions that prevent minority voters from casting in their ballots. Journey spoke to 20 HBCU students on why their vote matters more than ever now.