44,000 people attended the historic “Win With Black Women” Zoom call on July 21, which raised more than $1.5 million to support Vice President Kamala Harris’ candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination, including writer and producer Janine Sherman Barrois. A member of the organization since it was founded by Jotaka Eadie in August 2020, the Big Cigar showrunner has followed Harris’ career since she helped raise funds for the then-San Francisco district attorney’s election as California attorney general in 2010. Today, she says the motivation to secure this next stage in Harris’ political trajectory is more urgent than ever.
“In entertainment, we write about post-apocalyptic worlds and how crazy it would be if people tried to overthrow the government, and we’re living in that world,” Barrois told The Hollywood Reporter. “There’s no nuance there. It’s literally, do you want to go back, or do you want to believe in the hope and future of America? And we don’t want to go back.”
These sentiments are expected to be further fuelled by the action at the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC), taking place in Chicago from August 19-22, where Kerry Washington, Mindy Kaling, Tony Goldwyn and Ana Navarro were just announced as nightly Hollywood hosts.
During the DNC, Win With Black Women will partner with other Black women-led organizations to host a Sisterhood Lounge at the McCormick Center, and Higher Heights For America, Sisters Lead Sisters Vote, and Black Women’s Leadership Collective will host speaking engagements with various Black women government leaders, including Georgia Senator Tonya Anderson, Illinois Representative Sonia Harper, and St. Louis Mayor Tishuara Jones. Ahead of the DNC, Danielle Brooks and Andra Day spoke about what this moment means to them, along with Slutty Vegan owner Pinky Cole, on a Win With Black Women Zoom call last Sunday.
“We often think of people in the entertainment industry as something separate. Yes, they are incredible talents, but they are also American voters,” Eadie says. “They have families, they have lives, and they bring that to the ballot box. We must always remember that they, too, are part of this country and participate in this democracy. It’s great to see them speaking out so publicly and so boldly about it.”
Evan Seymour Bain was also part of last month’s Win With Black Women kickoff call. Inspired by the momentum that built during the hours-long call, Seymour Bain began texting friends and colleagues, asking if they were attending the meeting. Two days later, she decided to create a WhatsApp group to share information and resources, especially among women in the industry. In just three weeks, the Black Women in Entertainment for Kamala (BWIE4Kamala) chat has grown from 10 people on the first day to over 500 actresses, executives, journalists, content creators, and media figures, engaging in voter letter writing and other forms of volunteer work, political action committee contributions and fundraising, social media campaigns, and now, a DNC watch party. Seymour Bain left her job as a publicist at Apple TV+ to focus fully on this effort.
“We wanted to create a grassroots way for everyone to get involved in a way that resonates with them most. [efforts] “I went so far as to write a check for over $50,000 to ensure that we all do our part to ensure that Kamala Harris becomes the 47th President of the United States and that Donald Trump never reaches the White House,” Seymour Bain stated bluntly, echoing a similar assertion. “We’re not turning back.”
In the run-up to the Democratic National Convention, Seymour Bain is working with Ashley Jackson, daughter of civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson and Gen Z voter engagement manager for BWIE4Kamala, to produce a podcast that will be broadcast live from the convention. This Wednesday, they will also launch the “Best Ballot Challenge” in conjunction with Ashley’s “White Women: Answer the Call Zoom.” “White Women: Answer the Call Zoom” is an offshoot of “Win with Black Women,” and after the kickoff call on July 25, more than 160,000 participants donated more than $8.5 million to the Harris campaign.
“Politically, as black women, we welcome this inspiration that we’re creating,” Eadie says. “We welcome our Latino brothers and sisters, our white men, our Southeast Asian brothers and sisters, and of course our black men to watch White Women: Answer The Call.”
“A lot of people have been talking about our call that was announced on Sunday. [Win With] “‘Black Men’ came out the next day. They support us. I think it’s meaningful that black men are coming together in solidarity to support black women,” Eadie adds. “They’re trying to create a narrative that we’re divided, but I think we’re more united than we’ve ever been.”
Gen Z and millennial voter participation is an issue that’s particularly important to actress Jenifer Lewis, who has participated in Win With Black Women calls and #CaregiversForHarris Zoom meetings.
“I have a great connection with Gen Z and millennials because they’ve been sitting on their couches and watching me appear as an auntie or a mother in black films. [and TV shows]”I’ve played a variety of roles, from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to A Different World to now playing the grandma on Black-ish,” Lewis says. “My kids have grown up with me, so there’s a bond and a trust. Not only do they see me, but they can sense that I care.”
This fall, Lewis will travel to Atlanta with BWIE4Kamala to work at historically black colleges and universities, including Spelman College, Morehouse College, Morris Brown College and Clark Atlanta University. “We’ll also be going to swing states in the South, canvassing, putting up flyers on street corners, doing whatever we can,” Lewis said, noting that surviving a 10-foot fall from a balcony while traveling through Africa in 2022 changed his outlook on life. “I was too young to fight in the ’60s, but now what else can I do but give back? It’s my life now.”
Eadie says Win With Black Women’s grassroots work will continue to pick up after the convention. “After Chicago, we’ll be getting back to work, making sure people have access to the tools they need to register themselves to vote, and also making sure others in their communities register to vote. We also want to partner with women in the entertainment industry to use their platforms with digital content or to support this collective effort by showing up in person when and where they can, so that everyone understands the importance of getting out and voting in this election. We also have many of you still joining us on the call on Sunday,” she says.
That likely includes Debra Martin Chase, a film and TV producer who was an early supporter of Harris and co-hosted a fundraiser for the then-Senator during her first presidential campaign in 2019. She is now organizing a donor event to support the Democratic candidate this time around.
“We have to remember that this is going to be a very close race,” said Martin Chase. “It’s going to be a long road to November and we can’t take our foot off the gas for a second as we’re going to be fighting until the very end.”