VoteEquality: Equal rights bus stops at VSU

Malia Thomas, The Valdosta Daily Times, Ga.
·4 min read

Sep. 28—VALDOSTA — Candidates aren't the only ones blazing the campaign trails.

VoteEquality, a nonpartisan grassroots effort promoting equal rights, recently made a pit stop on the Valdosta State University campus, and it plans on coming back for more.

VoteEquality is on a bus tour across North Carolina to Florida to encourage the public to vote and activate more voters and will be back in Georgia this week.

The group evolved from VAratifyERA, another group that mobilized efforts to get the Equal Rights Amendment ratified in Virginia, and is led by a group of advocates from the last three states to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (Virginia, Illinois and Nevada).

The tour was at recent stops in Macon and Warner Robins Thursday when Jess Kujala, co-founder and director, contacted David Johnathan "D.J." Davis, VSU's A Chance to Initiate Opportunities Now president, about making a quick pit stop at VSU.

"It was real last minute but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to bring voter outreach on campus, especially with support for equality. As you all know, it's one of the issues I'm most passionate about," he said.

"I wish I had more time to prep and work with the campus event services so they could've permitted us to park at Nevins Hall or the Converse lawn for a really big turnout but I'm happy we got several dozen to come out to the UC (University Center). I plan on having them back on campus in October."

Kujala said visiting the VSU campus is right up the group's alley since VoteEquality's main mission is registering voters, particularly in more rural areas where outreach is not as prevalent.

"We ourselves are a national group. We have a mission to enshrine the Equal Rights Amendment in our Constitution. In order to do that, folks have to use their vote, so that's why we work with groups in tandem like the New Georgia Project, Black Voters Matter, NAACP and many of the Divine 9 sororities to get out this vote," she said.

"We bring the big, purple 28-foot bus, so we draw the attention, we have music, we sort of start the party because who can ignore a 28-foot purple bus on the side of the road? And then once folks come over to say 'Hey, what's going on?' — that's when we have our community volunteers talk to folks about voting and talk to everyone about the lack of equality, especially gender equality, in our Constitution."

Kujala mentioned the four "fast facts" that show a need for this type of legislation: — 168 international constitutions include gender equality. The U.S. Constitution does not. — The United States is no longer in the top one-third of countries when ranked by gender equality. — America is one of only two countries in the world that does not guarantee paid maternity leave. — The gender equality gap costs Americans $2,000,000,000,000 every year.

The VSU stop got another surprise in the form of a brief appearance from state Rep. candidate Darrius Butler (District 8), who was traveling from Warner Robins to do an appearance in Brooks County and he signed the tour bus in a show of support for the Equal Rights Amendment.

"They support candidates who support women's rights and I've seen the work that they do and I'm going to stand with them. So I'm here supporting women's rights and women's equality and also the right to vote. That's why I'm so glad to be back in Valdosta; I was here last week to speak with the kids, and now I'm back fighting for women, so that's what it's all about," he said.

Davis said he will try to host VoteEquality at VSU in late October in tandem with a planned women's march, as warnings for inclement weather in the South Georgia region has pushed back plans for an earlier rally.

VoteEquality plans to close out September with a trip to Savannah. For more information on the tour stops and the Equal Rights Amendment, visit https://voteequality.us/2022-tour/ or email Kujala at Jess.Kujala@VoteEquality.US.