After the 2024 election, many of us—especially Black leaders, organizers, and movement builders—took a step back. We needed rest. We needed recovery. And we needed time to reflect on what we had just endured. It was radical for Black organizers to take a break after consistent decades of wisdom and 100 days of putting maximum effort behind a new Democratic nominee. But six months into this new administration, the reality is clear: the threats to our communities are not slowing down. If anything, they’re multiplying.

From Haitian deportations to the corporate dismantling of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, rising attacks on civil liberties, federal troops deployed to majority Black cities like Washington, D.C and economic instability hitting Black workers first, the conditions leave the question of if it is time for Black leaders to return to intentional, strategic engagement. In the last three months nearly 300,000 Black women have exited the workforce. Federal job cuts and the dismantling of DEI programs have hit our community first and the hardest.

Corporate America, once happy to signal its commitment to diversity, is abandoning DEI efforts at a staggering pace. These rollbacks are happening quietly, with too little pushback. Yet when we’ve chosen to respond collectively, we’ve shown our impact. In March of this year, a national Target boycott organized by Black activists had measurable economic consequences. Target recently reported sales falling for the third-straight quarter. The campaign’s message is simple: our dollars matter, and so does our dignity. Target’s stock is among the worst performing companies in the S&P 500 this year with CEO Brian Cornell recently stepping down after 11 years at the retailer. When Black communities move together with clarity and coordination, the results are real, and so is the fear we put into systems that profit from our erasure.


For years, immigration crackdowns were framed as a “Latino issue,” but the truth is our Caribbean and African diaspora communities are squarely in the crosshairs now. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removals topped 180,000 by August 2025 with an emphasis on Haitian TPS holders who were promised safety here. The Department of Homeland Security has announced plans to terminate Haitian Temporary Protected Status this month, putting half a million more at risk.

There’s a persistent false narrative that Black people, across generations, act in perfect unison—an oversimplification that erases our real, healthy debates about strategy and vision. Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had profoundly different approaches, yet both were vital. Today, our movements are just as diverse in thought, but our collective resources—economic, cultural, and organizational—remain vast.

We are trendsetters. We drive the national conversation. We move markets. And when we coordinate, we change outcomes. In this post election moment, the question isn’t if our community has the capacity to be changemakers, it’s if we’re ready to re-engage together again on these issues.

Re-engaging now does not mean burning ourselves out. It means being strategic about where we can have the most impact. Elections are one tool, not the whole toolbox. If we’re going to activate, policy, protest, mutual aid, and economic pressure must work together.

This moment calls for leadership from every generation. Black women, who have carried disproportionate weight in our movements, cannot be left to hold the line alone. Black men—whose voting participation is often reduced to misleading statistics—remain crucial partners. Our strength lies in mobilizing across our differences, not in searching for a single leader or a single ideology.

We paused because we had to. But our pause was never meant to be permanent. The forces working against us are organized and advancing. It’s time we start to think about doing the same—with clarity, with unity of purpose, and with the full force of our cultural, economic, and political power to protect the progress our community has made so far, and fight against any further regression in this country.

Re-engaging in politics can feel challenging—especially after an election cycle and the frustration that can come with the process. But politics doesn’t end at the ballot box. Real, tangible change starts in our communities. When we show up locally, we see real results from our efforts.

Through APS & Associates, we’ve worked with organizations like Grow Greater Englewood to bring pop-up farmers markets to address food deserts on Chicago’s South Side, and with Illinois Partners for Human Services on their “Living Wages, Thriving Communities” campaign to demand fair pay for human service workers—most of whom are Black women caring for our families. This is the power of engagement. Start small: volunteer your time, attend community meetings, and choose an issue you care about—whether it’s food insecurity, mass incarceration, or economic justice. The current political climate makes these challenges more urgent than ever, and your voice, presence, and action can help create the change we need.

The intermission is over. Take action today, collaborate with your community, re-engage political leaders, and connect with your local impact organizations. It’s time to get back in the game.