Watch Vans Jones Talk Stacey Abrams, Georgia Runoff Election
Van Jones Sums Up How "Black Joy" Defeated "White Rage" in Georgia's Senate Runoffs
Van Jones is giving credit where it's due. As results for Georgia's Senate runoff elections trickled in Wednesday morning, the CNN host spoke about how "Black joy" and Stacey Abrams's tireless efforts helped Raphael Warnock defeat Republican incumbent Kelley Loeffler and Jon Ossoff take the lead against Republican incumbent David Perdue, thus bringing the Senate one step closer to a Democratic majority.
Jones began by giving a shout-out to a few organisations that played a pivotal role in combatting voter suppression and mobilizing voters in Georgia ahead of the 2020 presidential election and the subsequent Senate runoffs. "The big factor is Black Voters Matter, it's New Georgia Project. If you have Black genius and grassroots genius on display and Black joy . . . some of the tactics that were used on the ground to get people together — food, music, culture. This is Black joy versus a certain kind of white rage, and Black joy won."
After referencing a few blunders made by the Republican party ahead of the runoffs — namely, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's "Scrooge McDuck"-like disapproval of bumping up stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000 — Jones reiterated the role Black joy played in potentially flipping the Senate blue and praised Abrams and her fellow organisers. "The key aspect [is] the genius of the Black grassroots at every level, picking real people with real stories, coming aboard with joy, with determination, with resilience," he said.
"Stacey Abrams lost two years ago and made herself stronger. Donald Trump lost two months ago and made himself weaker."
Referencing Abrams's defeat in Georgia's 2018 gubernatorial race, the political commentator added: "Stacey Abrams lost two years ago and made herself stronger. Donald Trump lost two months ago and made himself weaker. That is the story. And Stacey Abrams is not by herself . . . you'll never be able to get the full roll call of the Black people, especially Black women, who brought this victory home months and months and months ago when nobody was watching Georgia." Though Ossoff's race against Perdue has yet to be officially called, one thing's for sure: those who organised in the Peach State are a powerful force to be reckoned with.
