Johnson: The coalition pouring into Alabama scares Republicans to death

This is an opinion column.

For months, the refrain was consistent: Not our fight. I heard it throughout the summer and fall as Alabamians mobilized in cities from the Gulf to the Tennessee line to protest Donald Trump during the national “No Kings” rallies. Those gatherings focused on the former president's policies, authoritarian rhetoric, and his personal conduct. Yet, as the crowds filled the streets, they remained overwhelmingly white, leaving many to wonder where the voices of African Americans — who have arguably faced the most severe impacts of the current political environment — were during these demonstrations.

The Missing Piece

Black Americans have plenty of reasons for disdain. From the disparagement of powerful Black women to the disproportionate impact of federal workforce purges and the strategic redrawing of congressional districts, the stakes are existential. While Kamala Harris secured 86% of the Black vote in 2024, the political landscape remains polarized; according to the Pew Research Center, nearly eight in ten Trump voters were white.

A New Movement Takes Root

That dynamic shifted recently as buses flooded the Alabama State House in Montgomery. These protesters weren't just demonstrating; they were responding to a direct assault on Black political representation and the effort to eliminate the state’s two Black congressional districts. Led by Black Voters Matter and bolstered by groups like the ACLU of Alabama, HICA, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice, the movement is gaining momentum.

“Some of them were there,” says Celsa Stallworth, organizing manager at the ACLU of Alabama, referencing the “No Kings” activists. “However, a lot of them were marshalling to make sure people were being kept safe. But they also acknowledged that they were in the background.”

Building a Lasting Coalition

The whispering about who is fighting for whom needs to end. Effective opposition to the current political climate—whether regarding the assault on minority rights or economic neglect—requires a coalition unlike any the nation has seen before. It must be a unified front of cultures, generations, and regions, translating energy into historic voter turnout for both the upcoming primaries and the November midterms.

“This isn’t a protest,” says LaTosha Brown, co-founder of Black Lives Matter. “It’s an altar call to those from all corners of the country who want to join us to strengthen this democracy. You will see what democracy looks like.”

The No Kings coalition has signaled it is joining this fight in solidarity, stating that the current effort to silence Black voters is a deliberate attempt to reset the clock to the Jim Crow era. As Cliff Albright and Brown of the Black Voters Matter Fund noted, “Sixty years after Bloody Sunday, we are once again being called to meet this moment with collective action.” With nearly 70 events planned across 28 states, the message is clear: this is a fight that belongs to all of us. It is time for the movement to begin.