Posted on Wednesday, October 14, 2020
To kick off early voting, Texas Southern University students marched to the polls this morning after accepting Mayor Sylvester Turner’s early voting challenge. Led by the Ocean of Soul Marching Band, students marched from University Towers to the West Garage, where a polling location in stationed.
Brief remarks were provided by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, TSU Interim President Ken Huewitt, U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Houston Council Member Dr. Carolyn Evans-Shabazz, TSU Student Government Association President Khaniya Burley, and others on the historic Tiger Walk.
Hosted by the Office of Student Life, the march to the polls was an event to encourage students to exercise their rights as U.S. citizens to cast their votes. This event and others hosted by the University are a part of the TSU Votes initiative, which provides students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the community with information and resources needed for a successful voting experience.
“TSU proudly accepts Mayor Turner’s challenge,” said TSU Interim President Kenneth Huewitt, “This University must maintain its position as a leader in the push for freedom and justice. From student lunch counter sit-ins in the 1960s to today’s protests for societal change and social justice, TSU has and will always encourage our community to engage and participate in activities that better our society.”
Dr. Teresa McKinney, vice president of the Division of Student Services and Enrollment Management, was excited about the students’ participation and excitement to head to the polls. “At TSU, we understand the power of our voice and our vote. We exercised this power today by marching to the polls as one of the many events under the TSU Votes initiative. We stand in solidarity as the TSU family of scholars because we are better together!” Earlier this semester, the Office of the Student Life hosted daily Voter Registration Drives to encourage students to register to vote.
Labor Day weekend, The Vibe, the digital Urban Alternative station powered by KTSU 90.9 FM, partnered with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and Houston Area Urban League (HAUL) Young Professionals to host a community Drive Thru-Voter Registration and 2020 Census Drive. To conclude the Voter Registration push, the University, along with the Division of Student Services and Enrollment Management, The Vibe, Project Activation, and the NAACP, hosted an additional Drive-Thru Voter Registration event for TSU students.
“We understand that change is inevitable, but progress is a choice. We want our students to be a part of progress as change agents for a better tomorrow. We have been communicating to students that their votes matter,” said McKinney. For more information about the TSU Votes initiative, visit tsu.edu/votes
Category: Students, News Media, Faculty & Staff, Alumni