Two years ago, on January 6th 2021, we watched in horror alongside Americans across the country, as rioters attacked the United States Capitol and our democracy. That day we decided that we could no longer sit on the sidelines. For the sake of our community, city, state and democracy, we knew that we – and many others – must engage more forcefully in the political process. And, we have.

STAND-UP Mobile: A Blueprint for US began with a deep focus on voter education and advocacy in the Black community. For too many years, we have been excluded from the important discussions and decisions that have led to a tremendous negative impact on our communities.

This exclusion does not just hurt our communities though. When our neighborhoods are abandoned – left in disrepair and forgotten – and our growth is stifled, it hurts the whole city of Mobile and the whole state of Alabama. We will only truly meet our potential as a city, when ALL our citizens and neighborhoods have the opportunity to thrive.

And, we will only be able to thrive when we are able to participate in these discussions and decisions. Every week, local lawmakers make decisions small and large – from how best to address our neighborhoods failing infrastructure to which public parks and facilities need repairs and upgrades; on how hard-earned taxpayer dollars should be spent to what the future of the city should be.

This is why we have helped build a coalition of individuals, leaders and organizations joined together in the common goal of real change in our community through engagement and participation. We have had a few wins; we’ve broken some real barriers and in many ways we made historic progress that is critical to citizen engagement and critical for our future.

Over this past year, with the help of our coalition, we ensured a much fairer redistricting process at the local level and we continue our fight at the national level. Stand-UP Mobile’s former President Shalela Dowdy is a plaintiff in Merrill v. Milligan, a redistricting case before the U.S. Supreme Court that is crucial to fighting against the continuing efforts to create maps with the goal of preventing fair representation.

We are also fully engaged in the discussion on efforts to annex areas of the county into the City of Mobile. This is a top priority for our organization and coalition as it could change the trajectory of our communities and city forever. With the huge impact taking in thousands – if not tens of thousands – of residents would have on our long-neglected neighborhoods and city facilities and already-overstretched city services, it is of the utmost importance that we, as a City, get this right.

Through registering new and returning voters, engaging more of our citizens in these important discussions and ensuring representation and input in integral decisions, our communities will have a true seat at the table finally allowing real progress for ALL our citizens.

Two years later we still believe that engaging in the political process and fighting for better outcomes is the best way to honor those who fought so hard to preserve our democracy that day and every day since and for years to come, we will do just that.

Amelia Bacon and Beverly Cooper are co-founders of Stand-Up Mobile, which was founded in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.