POST
PRODUCTION
SCRIPT
Foreign
Correspondent
2021
Give
Us the Ballots
28
mins 48 secs
©2021
ABC
Ultimo Centre
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Harris Street Ultimo
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Precis
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Meet the
formidable women in Georgia who fought for democracy and won. They battled
generations of racism and voter suppression, inspiring record black voter
turnout. Now their sights are set on the American South. In Foreign
Correspondent’s season return, we meet the formidable women in Georgia who
fought for democracy and won. In last
November’s presidential elections, black women in the southern US state of
Georgia pulled off the unthinkable. They delivered a staunchly conservative
state to Democrat Joe Biden. Their secret?
Record voter turnout. Now they want to
do it again in the Senate run-off elections. "This vote
is a hammer and you can use it. Or maybe it’s a flashlight and you can see your way out of
this," says Deborah Scott from Georgia Stand-Up, a non-partisan voting
rights group based in the capital Atlanta. Deborah and her
team are part of a movement which has campaigned tirelessly for more than a
decade to mobilise minorities to vote. It’s an uphill
battle. Activists believe the state government has been illegally purging
tens of thousands off the electoral roll – a tactic they call ‘voter
suppression’. But this just
adds fuel to their fire. “The more you suppress us, the more we are coming
for you,” says Deborah. Our US-based
reporter Karishma Vyas goes to the Deep South as Deborah and her team gear up
for the crucial Senate poll which will decide control of Congress. We hear from
voters who have been purged from the roll, from white militia members who
question the validity of their vote, and from the volunteers mobilising young
people to turn out like never before. "It’s been
an awakening," says 25-year-old Georgia Stand-Up organiser Ariel.
"It’s a great fearlessness because you feel as though anything is
possible." In a timely and
inspiring story, we see the black women of Georgia successfully turn out
record numbers of voters, even as powerful forces conspire to undermine their
democratic rights. For Deborah and
her team, this is just the beginning. They have become a new force in US
politics. "As Georgia
goes, so does the rest of the South. We see it as a tipping point," says
Deborah Scott. |
|
DC Protests: Trump supporters vs counter
protest |
Crowd:
"Fight for Trump! Fight for Trump!” TV
AUDIO: "The Fox News Decision Desk can now project that Joe Biden will
become the 46th President of the United States." TRUMP
SUPPORTER: "The wrong people are going to turn this country to
socialism, communism, Marxism." |
00:00 |
|
COUNTER
PROTESTERS: "Trump pack your shit. You’re
illegitimate." |
00:15 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: It’s
been a year like no other in America. COUNTER
PROTESTERS: "America
was never great." TRUMP
SUPPORTER: "Losers cheat to win." |
00:20 |
Karishma
in crowd |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: A country at war
with itself. |
00:26 |
Trump
rally |
TRUMP:
"The radical Democrats are trying to capture the Georgia senate
seats." CROWD
boos. TRUMP:
"You just can’t let them steal the US senate." |
00:33 |
Following
Deborah and her team |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Two months ago I came to this southern state of Georgia, the final
battleground for control of the senate. DEBORAH:
"Stand up… Vote. |
00:43 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Tracking a powerful
movement that’s changing the face of US politics. |
00:52 |
|
DEBORAH: We had to fight for the right to vote. |
00:57 |
Deborah
and team on street |
DEBORAH:
"Are you registered?" MAN:
"Yes Ma'am. DEBORAH:
Alright. Our people have worked and died for this right, |
00:59 |
Deborah |
so
we’re not gonna let anybody take it away from them. |
01:04 |
Atlanta
skyline. Story title: GIVE US THE BALLOT |
Music
|
01:09 |
Super:
ATLANTA, GEORGIA |
RADIO
NEWS AUDIO MONTAGE: "Well it all
comes down to Georgia, folks… |
01:13 |
Karishma
driving. Super: |
What
happens in Georgia is going to determine the future of the United States… |
01:17 |
Atlanta
GVs |
A
clearing trend overnight in southern Georgia that is going to allow it to get
fairly cold again…" |
01:22 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: It's winter in
Atlanta and new COVID cases are spiking at around 5,000 a day. This once
vibrant city is eerily quiet. |
01:28 |
|
PHONE CANVASSER: Good morning Wyatt Clan.
This is Queen Larosa, Georgia Stand-Up…We’re just
reaching out to voters to remind them …Please Get up, Get out, |
01:46 |
Fulton
Country Stand-Up volunteers |
cast you ballot so your vote can be counted and your voice can be heard. KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Here in Fulton County, election fever is
ramping up. DEBORAH: First of all,
is everybody in here registered to vote? |
01:53 |
Deborah
addresses volunteers |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: It’s the last
day of voter registration for the run-off elections in two senate seats.
Deborah Scott, veteran voting rights activist, is rallying her team. |
02:10 |
|
DEBORAH: "We want serial voters,
because what is voting? Power.
There are two kinds of power, there’s organised money and there’s
organised people. We don’t necessarily have
organised money, but we can organise people. What we’re really trying to do
is build power
for our communities… |
02:23 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Deborah is part of a
formidable force of black women leaders in Georgia. They’ve registered
over 800,000 voters in the last two years. |
02:43 |
|
DEBORAH:
"If somebody says who should I vote for, what do you say?" GUY:
"That’s up to you." DEBORAH
"That’s up to you…. |
02:52 |
|
Can
everybody say non-partisan." GROUP:
"Non-partisan." DEBORAH:
"Your job is to just make sure they get to the polls." |
02:59 |
Volunteers
hit the street |
DEBORAH:
"Does everybody have a coat, take your coat with you. It’s
going to be cold! Do you have a coat?" DEBORAH:
Your vote is your ticket to play in this game. What's
the saying? Either you're at the table or you're on
the menu. You need to be at the table |
03:04 |
Deborah
100% |
so
that you can decide what is best for your family and community. |
03:20 |
Volunteers
in minibus |
RADIO: "Today is the last day to
register to vote in Georgia. You must register by the end of the day, today.
And even if you think you’re already registered,
double check and confirm." |
03:26 |
Volunteers
on streets |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: In November, Georgia, a traditionally
republican state, voted for a democratic president for the first time in 30
years. A record number of African-Americans
voted. Now
the focus is on getting them to turn out again. |
03:39 |
|
VOLUNTEER:
"Hi How are you….good. Are you registered to
vote?" MAN:
"No ma'am, I’ve only been out of jail for 6 years." |
03:55 |
|
VOLUNTEER:
"I think you can vote as long as you’re not on probation. This here will
tell you how you can register." |
04:05 |
|
MAN:
"I’m gonna make sure give one to my man over here." VOLUNTEER: "Alright, do that, okay." DEBORAH: "We want them to come out and vote
early. |
04:12 |
Deborah
on video call |
Can
we say early folks?. Early! Early in the
morning!" KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Historically, people don’t turn out to vote in run-offs. Deborah needs to
change that. DEBORAH: Of course, the base of everything we do is
Black women. |
04:19 |
|
I
said, Black women do your thing, because we know that when black women work together we get it done! |
04:34 |
Ariel
films Deborah |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: 25-year-old Ariel
A'nette Singleton is Deborah's most promising protégé. ARIEL: It's been an awakening, and it’s a great
fearlessness, |
04:42 |
Ariel
100% |
because you feel as though anything is
possible. |
04:51 |
Ariel
prepares Deborah for filming |
ARIEL: "Just say you can visit our
website, Stand-up.org or follow us on Instagram, twitter and Facebook." ARIEL: Seeing the numbers, especially black youth
coming out in record numbers. |
04:54 |
Ariel
100% |
I
mean that just says something about our generation. |
05:06 |
Youth
volunteers board bus |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Since Donald Trump
was elected in 2016, Georgia has seen a surge in young people registering to
vote, up by 35 percent. |
05:09 |
Youth
volunteers in office |
ARIEL:
"You be on
social media point in Dekalb county, okay?" |
05:22 |
|
ARIEL:
I have a power, I have an entitlement. It’s by law; I know have this right. This is mine. |
05:26 |
Ariel
100% |
And
I'm going to do it, whether you say I can or not. |
05:32 |
Local right-wing pro-Trump protest at Capitol in
Atlanta |
|
05:34 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: A crowd assembles at
the capitol building in downtown Atlanta. |
05:40 |
|
EVANGELICALS
sing: "Build a city, oh great defender of the righteous." |
05:45 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: They’re
not interested in the senate run offs, they’re focused on Donald Trump’s loss
in November. |
05:50 |
Vox
pops with protestors |
MAN: Every single legal vote should be counted and everyone should just have one vote. KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: And you believe that’s
not the case? MAN:
I don’t believe that happened. |
05:57 |
|
WOMAN:
I believe some votes were counted that were not legal. |
06:03 |
Militia
on side of road overseeing protest |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Protecting the
protesters today is the Three Percent security force. Their leader, Chris
Hill is known as General Blood Agent. |
06:06 |
Chris
Hill 100% |
CHRIS
HILL: What we’re seeing
right now unfolding before our very eyes is our country going
sideways. It is fraud, 100 percent, it is our constitutional rights being
taken away from us. |
06:19 |
Militia
walk across street to protestors |
CROWD:
"God bless America." |
06:27 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: The militia is armed
to the teeth. they’re allowed to be; it’s an open
carry state. CROWD
cheers |
06:30 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: There
are more than 300 militias like this across the United States. MILITIA
GUY: Everyone from 18 to 45 years, according to the Constitution, |
06-:39 |
Militia
guy addresses crowd/Induction of militia members |
can
swear in right now and you can become the fighters of this country and
defenders in the last stand we have. |
06:50 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: A fellow far-right
group uses the protest to recruit and induct more militia members. |
06:59 |
|
MILITIA
GUY: "Enemies foreign and domestic, without any mental reservation. So help me God! You are no longer just an American
civilian. You are now part of the American militia." |
07:04 |
Antifa
moves in |
ANTIFA: "No Trump. No KKK. No
fascist USA." "Heads up! Heads up! Heads up! Heads up!" |
07:22 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: The sudden arrival of
a new group causes concern for the militia. |
07:30 |
Karishma
in crowd |
On
my right, we have a whole bunch of Trump supporters rallying as well as fully
armed militia, and on my left we have black clad,
fully armed, Antifa. |
07:37 |
|
ANTIFA:
"Trump and Klan go hand in hand." |
07:50 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Antifa are far-left
anti-fascist protesters. |
07:57 |
|
The
two groups are itching for a fight, but the cops are holding the line. |
08:11 |
|
ANTIFA:
"Hey man, my taxes pay your salary." |
08:16 |
|
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: But just as the
protest is winding down, the mood shifts. |
08:30 |
Antifa
members on street |
|
08:36 |
Antifa
guy behind tree |
ANTIFA
GUY: "I’ve got one in the
chamber, bro." KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Guns are drawn,
cocked and ready. it appears the militia is trapped, |
08:45 |
Three
Percent militia in parking garage |
in
a parking garage. ANTIFA
GUY: "C’mon guys, ain’t y’all supposed to be beating your wives today?
Like goddamn, go home. Go eat some fried gator or
some bullshit." |
08:57 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: They’re
blocked in this parking lot and I’ve heard that they’ve tyres smashed, so
they can’t really leave. |
09:08 |
|
MILITIA
GUY: "Fuck you, fuck your daughter." |
09:17 |
Freeway and cityscapes |
RADIO: "To Georgia now, where early voting is
underway to decide who will fill those last two senate seats and ultimately
decide which political party will control the senate." |
09:22 |
Stand-Up
office. Deborah addresses volunteers |
DEBORAH:
"Alright, this is the beginning of early voting. It’s supposed to stop
raining, but the temperature is gonna drop." KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Voter registration
has closed. These activists now need
to get people to show up at the polls. |
09:31 |
|
ARIEL:
"You can let people know that NAACP with Lyft are giving free rides to
the polls." KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: And make sure they can vote unencumbered. |
09:47 |
Security
briefing role play |
DEBORAH:
"Andrew, tell us about security; if somebody gets in your face, what do
you do?" ANDREW:
"If somebody is approaching you and you feel 1000% that you’re being
threatened, you say ‘Excuse me, brother – or sister
– please back up’ and at that point you look around. A lot of these
individuals are actually carrying firearms on them, and they’re pulling out
these firearms out." DEBORAH:
"If it starts getting crazy, just go back in the van. |
09:56 |
|
We
don’t want to get in the middle of it, we don’t want be on the news for the
wrong thing." ARIEL:
"Right, that’s it." DEBORAH:
We keep saying this is the most important election of our lifetime, but it’s probably going to get bad before it gets better. |
10:18 |
Deborah
with bullhorn waiting to depart |
DEBORAH:
"When y’all get to your first site, take pictures, walk around, get out
of the van, find the entrance, find out what’s going on. Be careful, be
careful, be careful." DEBORAH:
You would think that |
10:31 |
Deborah
100% |
every man and woman has
the right to vote, |
10:41 |
Voter
Care bus |
but that's not the
case. There’s been a concerted effort to make it
harder on some people. |
10:44 |
Polling
place |
DEBORAH: "Let’s
do, let’s do it… |
10:50 |
Deborah
handing out bags to voters in line |
Happy voting day, thank you for
voting." KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: It's not just about getting people
out to vote. Civil rights groups here are also fighting voter suppression. |
10:55 |
Voter
line/Inside polling station |
DEBORAH: "Put your mask on, because we've got
to keep you safe." KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: They say the
government is preventing certain communities from voting. |
11:07 |
|
DEBORAH:
The voter suppression tactics that we've
seen, from closing of polls |
11:15 |
Deborah
100% |
to changing polling locations to purging, |
11:19 |
Inside
polling station |
based on race and based on class, is really
running rampant here. It’s really depressing when
you realise that |
11:23 |
Deborah
100% |
people have worked hard to keep people down. "We are here because we love voters. We
will |
11:32 |
TV
cameras film Deborah addressing voters |
vote! We will vote! No matter what they
throw at us, we’re reminding people that we are here
for you. We want to make sure that this is a free and fair election." |
11:42 |
Drone
shot. Suburban street |
|
11:56 |
Kids
on street |
KID:
"Don't forget to vote!" |
12:01 |
|
TAYELOR
MCCURDY: They purge you from the
polls. You can be registered to vote, you move counties, next thing you know you’re just purged from the polls completely. |
12:05 |
Tayelor
and volunteers on suburban street |
TAYELOR:
"So we can hit this on our way back up." KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: 29-year-old Tayelor
McCurdy is
volunteering for Deborah's organisation today. |
12:12 |
Tayelor
interview on street |
TAYELOR:
You could have voted in a primary election last year and now all of a sudden you can’t vote anymore. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Do you know anyone that’s happened
to? TAYELOR:
It’s happened to me. |
12:23 |
Tayelor
and volunteers canvassing on suburban street |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Tayelor says this
happened just before the November elections. |
12:32 |
|
TAYELOR:
I actually went in to make sure that I was
registered to vote and saw that I wasn’t. And I know that I registered to
vote, and poof, no longer; |
12:36 |
Tayelor
interview on street |
purged
from the polls. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Could they give you an explanation of why your name was not
on the voter registration anymore? TAYELOR:
Nope, never an explanation. Just gone. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Just disappeared for
no reason. |
12:45 |
Tayelor
and volunteers on suburban street |
TAYELOR: Never an explanation. Black people have
always been politically active, but you have to
consider the lengths that people will go to, to keep Black people out of
those spaces. It’s a fight for us. It’s a huge fight for us. |
12:56 |
Drone
shot. Atlanta |
Music
|
13:12 |
Barbara
Arnwine at Atlanta capitol, press conference |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Civil rights groups are taking this fight to court. They’re suing the state of Georgia, alleging they
wrongfully purged tens of thousands of voters from the rolls. BARBARA
ARNWINE: "Why is it that every
time we have a purge case, it’s mainly black and brown people who are on
these lists?" |
13:17 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: The government claims voters were removed legitimately. Barbara
Arnwine and other civil rights lawyers dispute this. |
13:35 |
|
BARBARA: "We had to sue Georgia over and over
and over again." |
13:43 |
Barbara, La Tosha and group march to the
office |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: After
days of being unable to get a meeting with state officials they try again, in
person. LA TOSHA: "I would like to sit down
with you all, we don’t want to get the |
13:48 |
La
Tosha speaks to Chris Harvey |
run-around the block. We want to sit down
and have a meeting. Have our experts sit down with your experts and get it
resolved. We don’t want this to continue. We’re in the middle of the election and want to resolve
this as soon as possible. |
13:58 |
Atlanta
street GVs |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: This case joins more
than seven other voter suppression cases currently before the courts in
Georgia. |
14:11 |
|
DEBORAH: Atlanta Georgia USA, we’re
in the South. The US South has a history of voter suppression. They have a
history of |
14:24 |
Deborah
100% |
abuse
of black and brown people. |
14:31 |
Archival.
1960s civil rights movement |
CIVIL
RIGHTS PROTESTORS: Freedom now, freedom now. |
14:33 |
|
MARTIN
LUTHER KING JR: While we know that the vote is the key to democratic
government, we are ready now to march on the ballot boxes, until every
situation that keeps us down at the bottom of the economic ladder is changed,
we’re ready to march on ballot boxes. When we look
around and we see that glad day, when all of God's children will be able to
cry out, 'free at last, free at last, thank god almighty, we are free at
last'. |
14:43 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: In 1965, the Voting
Rights Act was passed. It was one of the greatest achievements of the Civil
Rights Movement, |
15:18 |
Karishma
driving |
but
in 2013 the Supreme Court wound back the legislation. Civil rights groups claim many states have
reintroduced obstructive voter practices.
There’s only two weeks left to vote, but turn
out is soaring despite COVID and the cold.
|
15:32 |
Motorcade
|
But
here in Cobb County there’s a problem. |
16:03 |
Barbara
at polling station |
Lawyer
Barbara Arnwine is furious that almost half of the polling stations here have
been closed. BARBARA ARNWINE: We have counties in Georgia |
16:08 |
Barbara
with Karishma at polling station |
where 35% of all the African-Americans
have no car. If you don't
have a lot of polling sites, you're going to have long lines. Why should
somebody have to wait in line for three hours to vote? If you're
a working person, even though they're supposed to give you time off, they
usually only give you an hour. |
16:18 |
Queue
at polling station |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: She believes black and
brown voters are being targeted. BARBARA ARNWINE: They
closed not one white polling place, |
16:38 |
Barbara
with Karishma at polling station |
but
all the other ones they closed were in brown and black neighbourhoods. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: So
they didn't close a single polling station in predominately white
neighbourhoods? BARBARA ARNWINE: Not a single one. |
16:44 |
Queue
at polling station. Deborah talks to those in queue |
DEBORAH:
"Please stay in line, please stay in line and vote, no matter what it
takes. You gonna vote? Whatcha gonna do? Vote!,
Whatcha gonna do? Vote!" DEBORAH: We see people waiting in line four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
hours to cast their vote, because they know that their vote matters and, if
they continue to go back to the polls every time, that they'll
build a democracy that they really want. |
16:54 |
Deborah
interview |
KARISHMA VYAS, Reporter: Do you know who is behind suppressing the
vote, that particularly targets black and brown communities? |
17:36 |
|
DEBORAH:
I do know it's an ideology. I know that it's |
17:43 |
Super: |
steeped
in racism. I do know that a lot of white men are upset right now. There's a shift in power. When you've
been in the power class for all these many years, and then you start to see
that that's disrupted, I think that there's a fear there's going to be a
power shift, and they'll be at the bottom. |
17:48 |
|
Music
|
18:09 |
Rally
preparation |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: While voters are
struggling against suppression, candidates and election officials are facing
outright intimidation. |
18:17 |
Warnock
rally |
REVEREND
RAFAEL WARNOCK: "They’re trying to divide us
and our job is to remain focused and awake, because the stakes are so high.
You can’t control everything that a new day brings,
but my dad taught me a lesson. Your job is to just be ready. So I’m going to ask you tonight -- are you ready?" CROWD
cheers. |
18:26 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Reverend Rafael
Warnock is one the Democratic candidates for the senate. He’s the pastor at
the Ebenezer Baptist church, where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached. |
18:50 |
Atlanta
GVs. |
This
is one of several messages left for him at the church. |
19:02 |
|
PHONE
MESSAGE AUDIO: "There
is no leadership in that _______ church, and I don't use the word
_______. You think you're
fucking smart walking around talking shit about everybody. You ain’t gonna be
so smart when you’re beheaded. You won't be so smart when people drag out on the street and
destroy your ass… KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Even Republicans haven’t been spared. Trump supporters are threatening
conservative election officials, and their families. |
19:07 |
Gabriel
Sterling press conference |
GABRIEL
STERLING: This an election, this is the backbone of democracy, and all of you
who’ve not said a damn word are complicit in this. Mr. President, stop inspiring people to commit potential
acts of violence. Someone’s gonna get hurt, someone’s gonna get shot,
someone’s gonna get killed! |
19:32 |
Rural
Atlanta. Three Percent initiation |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: On the outskirts
Atlanta the Three Percent militia are initiating new members. CHRIS
HILL: "Know ye, to replace the
special trust and faith, and to strictly charge our members surrender
obedience to orders that may be given from time to time, |
19:50 |
|
General
Blood Agent commanding. You guys are a ranked, patched, vetted member,
trusted member, welcome member of Three Percent security force. Guns
up." MILITIA:
"Guns up!" CHRIS
HILL: "Hand salute, ready two, fall out." |
20:05 |
Militia
members congratulate each other |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Chris Hill founded this group in 2014, alarmed by the
progressive policies of President Obama. CHRIS
HILL: Our country has been stolen from us. |
20:30 |
Chris
Hill 100% |
The
only thing left is the right to bear arms and that’s
being taken away. The only thing we have left is free and fair elections. We’re here for when that fails. |
20:42 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Are you going to vote? |
20:50 |
|
CHRIS
HILL: It’s almost insanity to keep voting and
expecting a different result. We did not have a free and fair election. There
was rampant fraud. |
20:53 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: The African-American community is
worried that their names have been purged from electoral rolls. Do you
believe they're legitimate grievances? |
21:01 |
|
CHRIS
HILL: I haven't seen any evidence of that. I'm not aware of anything like that, that have been
suggested. I would hope not. And ah, yep. |
21:11 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: If the Democrats win
the senate runoff, what is your fear? |
21:25 |
|
CHRIS
HILL: The fear is that we would be on a countdown towards extinction in this
country. |
21:31 |
Militia
Guy interview |
MILITIA
GUY: I honestly believe we are currently engaged in what you would call a
cold civil war. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Are you prepping for that? Are you prepping for a civil war? |
21:35 |
|
MILITIA
GUY: Yes. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Next year? MILITIA
GUY: Next week. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Next week? |
21:45 |
|
MILITIA
GUY: I want this to be said. It may be tomorrow. It may be 10 years from now,
but there's too much fuel on the fire. |
21:54 |
Chris
Hill |
CHRIS
HILL: We're weeks away from catastrophe unfolding in the United States of
America. |
22:03 |
Trump
rally |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: The senate race is
incredibly tight. The night before the run offs,
Trump makes a last minute dash to Georgia. |
22:13 |
Trump
speech at rally |
TRUMP:
"There’s no way we lost Georgia, there’s no way. (cheers) That was a
rigged election." TRUMP
SUPPORTERS chant: "Four more years! Four more years!” |
22:25 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: He continues to flame
unproven conspiracies about election fraud. |
22:33 |
|
TRUMP:
"8,000 dead voters. 400,000 previously unreported mail in ballots magically
appeared!" |
22:39 |
Election
day, Georgia. Stand-up volunteers on street/ at polling station |
Newsreader: "Good morning, it’s the last day of
voting in Georgia…" |
22:47 |
|
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: It’s the final day of voting… In a
matter of hours the polls will close and the count
will begin. DEBORAH:
"How was your voting experience today? Do you have a mask?…I
got one for you. Hold on." KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: It's early, but Deborah and her team
are already at a polling station. |
23:10 |
Deborah
with Brendan |
DEBORAH: "Okay, you got it. Okay. Whatcha gonna
say?" BRENDAN:
"This election day, my name is Brendan Nelson, I’m here with Georgia
Stand-Up. What I’d like to say, let's do it again,
let's do it again. You gotta get out here and vote today. Yes ma'am, power to
the people!" DEBORAH: "Alright, go over there and do
that." |
23:30 |
Deborah
walks through carpark |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: It took Deborah 16 years of hard work to get here. DEBORAH:
"Voter suppression, voter depression. |
23:49 |
|
It’s
all about empowering black people and that’s why we’re here." |
23:55 |
Young people
with signs run across street |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: And people are using
their vote. This is on track to be the largest African-American
turn out Georgia has seen for decades. |
23:59 |
Deborah
interview at polling station |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Every election is about politics, but this election also
feels to me about race. DEBORAH:
Well, any time you have an election in the South, it’s
about race, whether people say it or not. People don’t
want Black people to vote. When Black people and brown people vote, things
change. |
24:10 |
Vox
pops with voters |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: What did you see that made you want to vote? |
24:28 |
|
MALE
VOTER: There’s people dying in record numbers that didn’t
have to die. |
24:30 |
|
FEMALE
VOTER: Looking at how everything is in the White House, man, it makes me feel
like I’m back in Mississippi. |
24:35 |
|
FIRST
TIME VOTER: Everybody wants to help save the day. Everybody want to be a
hero. That’s what it was. KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: You’re a hero today because you
voted. FIRST
TIME VOTER: Hey, I’m a hero today. I’m a Georgia voter. |
24:41 |
Deborah
on phone |
DEBORAH
(on phone): "How many more hours to go?" KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: Deborah can finally
see the finish line. DEBORAH:
"Jesus take the wheel. It’s almost over, It’s
almost over… Alright, I see some little ones over here…" KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: But even now she’s focusing on the future. |
24:50 |
Deborah
with girls |
DEBORAH
(to girls): "Now you can’t register until you’re 17 and a half. How old
are you now?" GIRL: "Ten." DEBORAH:
"Ten!...So 2027 you’re gonna what? Get
registered to vote, and then you gonna vote.
That’s your power. You got the power to
choose presidents." |
25:11 |
Freeway |
RADIO: "It's shaping up to be a long night
for election officials in Georgia." KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: The count is so close
that it isn’t until the next morning that the
results become clear. Both Democrats win their senate seats. |
25:32 |
|
REVEREND
RAFAEL WARNOCK: "82 year old hands that used to pick somebody else’s cotton
|
25:50 |
Warnock
on Zoom |
went
to the polls and picked her youngest son to be a United States senator. So I come before you tonight as a man who knows of the
improbable journey that led me to this place in this historic moment in
America could only happen here. |
25:53 |
|
DEBORAH:
"For the first time in history, |
26:19 |
Deborah
at Stand-Up meeting |
Georgia
has elected a Black senator. That really means a lot. We were a part of
making history. Stand up and what?..." EVERYONE:
"Vote!" DEBORAH:
"Stand up and what?" EVERYONE:
"Vote!" DEBORAH:
"Stand up and what?" EVERYONE:
"Vote!" |
26:23 |
Atlanta
skyline |
KARISHMA
VYAS, Reporter: But as Deborah
celebrates in Georgia, a different kind of history is unfolding in the
nation’s capital. |
26:42 |
Deborah
watches insurrection footage with Ariel |
DEBORAH:
"Oh smoke, smoke, smoke, smoke!... Why aren’t they doing anything? No
one is in handcuffs right now. I’m not advocating
for anybody to get shot, but if these were Black people, they would be dead. |
26:58 |
|
Even
on a day like today, where we can celebrate the first Black senator in a
state like Georgia, that on that same day this is what happens. So two steps forward, ten steps back." ARIEL:
"Don't stop fighting for your power. Don't stop fighting for what you
need." |
27:15 |
|
DEBORAH: "Can't stop, won't stop." |
27:33 |
Deborah
closes up office, turns the lights off, drives in
rain |
DEBORAH:
As we say, 'As goes Georgia, as goes the rest
of the South.' We see it as a tipping point. I
think this is only the beginning of shifting of values here. If you do the
work, if you register people to vote, if you see them as human beings with
wants and desires, they see that this vote is a hammer, and they can use it. |
27:44 |
Credits
[see below] |
|
28:23 |
Out
point |
|
28:48 |
CREDITS:
Reporter
Karishma Vyas
Producer
Catherine Scott
Editor
Nikki Stevens
Assistant
Editor
Tom Carr
Camera
Singeli Agnew
Additional
camera
Joe Van Eeckhout
Luke Thomas
Field
producer
Tamara Banks
Additional
footage
Zach D. Roberts
Jordan Freeman
Palast Investigative Fund
Archival
Research
Michelle Boukheris
Production
co-ordinator
Victoria Allen
Digital
producer
Matt Henry
Production
Manager
Michelle Roberts
Supervising
producer
Lisa McGregor
Executive
Producer
Matthew Carney