We Converge:
Post-Election Reflection

At Converge, our mission is to accelerate the creation of a radically just new world where communities of color thrive. We also elevate the humanity and dignity of people with all intersectional identities. To this end, the Converge team rejoices in seeing many historic firsts following the 2022 midterm elections that show a direction towards inclusivity: 

• Maryland elected its first Black governor Wes Moore. Anthony Brown was also elected the state’s first Black attorney general.

• Massachusetts saw the first openly gay woman governor Maura Healey. Another first Black woman to be elected attorney general in state history is Andrea Campbell. 

• New Hampshire witnessed the election of James Roesener, the first trans man to serve the state legislature. 

• Florida now has its first Gen Z member of Congress, Maxwell Alejandro Frost. 

• Pennsylvania has elected the first Black woman Summer Lee to Congress.

• In Connecticut, Eric Russell, the first Black out LGBTQ candidate, won the race as treasurer. The state also saw Stephanie Thomas as the first Black woman elected to serve as secretary of state.

During this holiday season, these wins are indeed worth celebrating because they are the fruits of multiple movements converging in this historical moment. These wins are significant also because communities of color now have better political representation, which is a catalyst for progress in racial justice. 

Lastly, social justice advocates can find comfort in knowing that despite waves of fear-mongering and gerrymandering by partisan politicians, the power of the people who showed up when their core democratic rights were at risk.

Celebrating Converge’s Wins in 2022

As a Black woman-owned social justice consulting firm, Converge has many wins to celebrate. We have grown from a New Orleans-based boutique firm to a national presence, serving client partners in over 11 states, including highly strategic regions such as Georgia, New York, Colorado, and California.

Converge’s work has also impacted southern movement building. We support our client partners in creating coalitions and collaborative initiatives in the South where social justice infrastructure has not been the strongest in the nation.

The Converge team has grown to 16 full-time staff this year. Below are some quotes from our team when asked about “What do you want to celebrate about Converge in 2022?” 

Partner Highlights

Currently, the Converge team is planning for the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation’s Democracy Learning Community Session 3 attended by thirteen Georgia-based nonprofit grantees that play a key role in mobilizing communities to show up in the state of Georgia’s elections. This learning community aims at helping these nonprofits develop cross-grantee strategies with a ten-year vision for Georgia. We want to elevate the work of a few organizations from this democracy cohort:
 

• Black Voters Matter

Black Voters Matter (BVM) works to increase power in communities through effective voting so that communities can determine their own destiny. Since 2016, BVM has built a strong team of nearly 45 staff and have grown their service area from one state to eleven states. BVM has also garnered substantial support from national funders and aided in record black turnout in the 2017 Alabama Special Election and 2021 Georgia Senate Runoff. BVM’s work embodies the notion that “There is no off season in democracy” for communities that often feel left out and left behind until just before major elections. 

• New Georgia Project

In 2014, New Georgia Project (NGP) began an incredibly ambitious project to register and engage 120,000 of the more than 800,000 unregistered citizens of color in Georgia in less than 8 months. NGP succeeded, registering 86,000 new voters directly, plus an additional 35,000 voters registered by twelve partner and allied organizations. In 2016, NGP connected with over 1.5 million Georgians in person, via telephone, text and mail yielding 123,521 voter registration form submissions, 398,421 phone calls, and over 75,000 door knocks. By December 2018, NGP had independently registered nearly 350,000 citizens of color: registering 25% of the target population in less than 3 years. 

• Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta

Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta are leading voices speaking to justice, civic engagement, and organizing around issues that affect the AAPI community in Georgia and the Southeast. Despite the pandemic in 2020, there was a record 186,289 AAPI ballots cast in the 2020 General Election (a 62.7% increase in turnout from the 2016 General), with 45,703 of those votes coming from first-time voters.  The level of turnout was made possible due to the past five years of organizing wins and naturalization efforts, which led to an additional 80,000 AAPI voters since 2016 and a 78% increase in votes cast by AAPI voters under 35.

A New Blog Series

Converge is releasing a new blog series consisting of media reviews in the world of arts, culture and entertainment from an intersectional and anti-racist perspective. 

If you are looking for a DEI-related movie to share and unpack with your team, Partner Track may be a good resource. A key takeaway from this show is that inauthentic DEI work does more harm than good.

Social justice consulting has been an emerging niche in the consulting industry. What kind of expertise does a social justice consultant offer? How can social justice consulting help organizations with regard to their missions? This new blog is a reflection on these questions.

Word of Wisdom