By Senator Hank Sanders
Come go with me. Come go with me on the Vote or Die Mobile bus. Come go with me as the Vote or Die Mobile travels through four counties in the West Alabama Black Belt. Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn. You were not there. You could not be there. You did not even know about the sojourn because I did not tell you. Still, some of you traveled vicariously as we posted multiple as-they-were-happening updates on Facebook. But you can travel with me now via this Sketches. So come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
We left before 8:00 a.m. I was there by 7:30 a.m. and others came shortly thereafter. We were ready in our minds. We were ready in our hearts. We were ready in our spirits. We were ready for Vote or Die! Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
We were on the Vote or Die Mobile. It is a former school bus painted purple, the same color as Vote or Die signs. There were Vote or Die signs in the windows. There were Vote or Die banners on each side. It is emphatically the Vote or Die Mobile. You can’t miss it. Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
There were just a few of us on the Vote or Die Mobile. That’s all we intended. The Vote or Die Mobile was its own energizing statement. It spoke loudly. It spoke clearly. It spoke Vote or Die! Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
After getting on the road, we headed west from Selma. We were delayed because one of the Vote or Die banners was coming off the side of the Vote or Die Mobile. The bus driver had spotted it flapping in the wind through his side rearview mirror. We stopped and took the banner off. That’s when we discovered the Vote or Die banner on the other side of the Vote or Die Mobile was missing. We retraced our path. But we could not find the missing banner. We decided to proceed without the second banner. Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
Our first stop was in Uniontown, Perry County, Alabama. We placed the one Vote or Die sign back on the Vote or Die Mobile. We held up Vote or Die signs on the streets as motorists passed. We asked motorists to blow their horns to acknowledge their support. We talked to people entering stores. We also gave small bags of sweet potatoes to some. At my insistence, we favored women. We thought women would be more likely to share with children. The message was clear: Vote or Die! Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
Our sojourn was documented. We took photos at each stop. We had them immediately posted on my personal Facebook as well as the Vote or Die Facebook page. We wanted people to travel vicariously with us by virtue of our Facebook posts. None of us knew how to live stream the Vote or Die Sojourn. So, we just made certain that photos were posted right then and there. Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.
We traveled on to Demopolis, Marengo County, Alabama. We drove slowly through several densely populated neighborhoods. We stopped, talked with voters and gave out small bags of sweet potatoes. Then we set up at two locations with heavy auto traffic. We wanted to be seen. We wanted our Vote or Die signs to be seen. We wanted the Vote or Die Mobile to be seen. We wanted the Vote or Die message to spread far and wide. It all said: Vote or Die! Come go with me on the Vote or Die Sojourn.