Good morning. I bring greetings on behalf of the officers and members of the Volusia County–Daytona Beach NAACP, the Florida State Conference of NAACP Branches under the leadership of President Donald Hart, and our National Headquarters, where Attorney Derrick Johnson serves as CEO of the NAACP—the oldest, largest, and most widely recognized civil rights organization in the nation.
For 117 years, the NAACP has stood at the forefront of the fight for civil rights. With more than a million members and supporters across the United States and around the world, we remain leading advocates for justice in our communities.
I want to thank my friend and colleague in the fight for civil rights, Reverend Caroline Shine, the shepherd of Greater Faith AME Church, and a servant leader who also accepted the mantle of President of the West Volusia Branch of the NAACP. Thank you for inviting me to speak at this community gathering, the NAACP Breakfast for Change. What a powerful theme. Thank you, Reverend Bradley, for allowing the W. Volusia NAACP to hold this event at this beautiful church.
Please join me in prayer: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.” I have quite a bit to say, but I packed it all into a 15-minute message. So if I start talking about one thing, and wind up on another street, blame it on my heart, and not my head, just this time, because we are living in some serious times!
The theme, Breakfast for Change, brings to mind the old Wheaties slogan, “Breakfast of Champions.” That phrase connected nourishment with strength and performance. In much the same way, real change requires us to be fed with courage, conviction, and commitment—so that we are prepared for the work ahead.
Breakfast for Change is more than the name of an event. It is a call for communities to come together, share a common purpose, and turn fellowship into action. Gatherings like this must inspire people, share truth, and mobilize support for causes that matter.
Why Breakfast for Change is important and what it reveals about today’s political climate: Understanding the Return of the Southern Strategy…Let me be clear: the NAACP is a non-partisan organization. What I am about to share with you is how the South strategized to become a stronghold. Most of Project 2025 is based on the playbook of the Southern Strategy. So, yes, the NAACP is non-partisan, but we ain’t crazy either! The Southern Strategy was a political approach used by Republican leaders in the 1960s and 1970s to attract white, socially conservative voters in the South. It drew on racial resentment and opposition to the Democratic Party’s support for the Civil Rights Movement, helping reshape the region from a longtime Democratic stronghold into a reliable Republican base.
For nearly a century after the Civil War, the South remained a Democratic stronghold known as the “Solid South.” That alignment began to shift in the mid-1960s, when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Those landmark laws accelerated a major political realignment, as many white Southern Democrats turned away from a party they believed had moved too far toward racial equality.
The strategy became nationally visible during Senator Barry Goldwater’s 1964 presidential campaign. Goldwater opposed the Civil Rights Act, arguing that it violated states’ rights. Although he lost the election in a landslide, he carried five Deep South states—showing that a conservative, anti-civil-rights message could gain strong support in the region.
Richard Nixon refined this approach during his 1968 and 1972 presidential campaigns. As openly racist rhetoric became less acceptable in national politics, Republican strategists increasingly relied on coded language—often called “dog whistles”—to appeal to racial resentment without naming race directly. What was once implied, however, is now often stated far more openly; today, the dog whistle can sound more like a bullhorn.
What began as an appeal to Southern segregationists eventually grew into a broader cultural and economic message. By combining the grievances of white Southerners with the anxieties of many working-class white voters in the North and Midwest, the Republican Party built a powerful political coalition. The strategy reshaped American elections and helped make the Deep South a reliably Republican region for decades.
NOW, WE ALL KNOW ABOUT PROJECT 2025, RIGHT? PROJECT 2025 IS ROOTED IN THE SOUTHERN STRATEGY. THIS IS WHERE PROJECT 2025 AND THE SOUTHERN STRATEGY HAVE AFFECTED BLACK AND BROWN VOTERS IN FLORIDA: Because of a super majority in the state legislature and a racist governor, Florida has become ground zero in practices that eliminate equal protection and voting rights laws.
From the STOP WOKE ACT that banned diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) programs at public schools, universities and in government, altering K-12 history standards-the banning of black history books, adding controversial lines suggesting that enslaved people “developed skills” that could be used for personal benefit, the erosion of fair districts and the disappearance of the voting rights act in our state, proof of citizenship in order to vote, college students unable to use student IDs, And most importantly, the SAVE ACT! It has been documented that Florida’s state policies are considered hostile to racial minorities.
Here’s the blueprint for a Successful Call to Action for the Breakfast for Change
1. We must define the specific “Why”: Our call to action must be specific, and it starts with Advocacy and Education:
- Advocacy: We must ensure that our voices are heard through massive voter registration, voter education, voter participation, and voter protection initiatives.
- Educate citizens about new bills that disenfranchise citizens; Challenge and hold elected officials accountable. They cannot come into our communities when it is time to campaign. We must ask them hard questions: “Do you believe in DEI, do you support the JOHN LEWIS VOTING RIGHTS ACT, how do you explain the elimination of the Fair District Amendment? Question how they are supporting other bills.
We must tell our story: HOW THE NEW LAWS AFFECT VOTERS:
- They would expand “Schools of Hope” to give private operators rent-free use of public-school facilities and athletic fields. Decreasing public school funding.
- Takes away black voting power in Florida. Giving Republicans a Super-Super Advantage. The law would shift Florida’s 28-seat U.S. House delegation from 20–8 Republican to 24–4.
These are just a few examples of the impact that these new laws have on Florida’s residents.
HOW TO GET ENGAGED; WHAT CAN I/WE DO—I’m glad you asked!!!
- Sign up to volunteer and Social Advocacy through: Voter registration drives, town hall meetings, meetings with the SOE, canvassing and phone banking, partnering with other grassroots organizations, become a poll worker or poll monitor, or RUN FOR OFFICE.
- Partner with grassroots organizations like: FAITH/CLERGY ALLIANCES, Divine Nine, League of Women Voters, ACLU, Common Cause, All Voting is Local, Black Voters Matter, Equal Ground, and other like-minded organizations
- Follow Up with Urgency: The most effective calls to action continue long after this breakfast ends.
THIS BRINGS ME TO THE THEME FROM OUR NAACP NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS, TAKEN FROM THE LATE REVEREND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. “THE FIERCE URGENCY OF NOW”
The phrase “the fierce urgency of now” is a famous rallying cry coined by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech. It warns against the “tranquilizing drug of gradualism” (meaning warnings against the dangers of accepting slow, incremental progress towards civil rights and equality) and demands immediate, aggressive action to dismantle racial, social, and economic injustice. More than six decades later, the concept remains a guiding principle for activism and social change. It is invoked by: “US”—Civil & Human Rights Advocates, “US”—Community & Labor Organizers
SO, WHAT ARE WE, THE FSC NAACP, DOING?
The FSC NAACP is a part of several lawsuits that restrict and deny the rights of voters in the state; from THE OUT OF BOUNDS FIGHT, Travel Advisories, Fair Districts violations, uniformity of Public Schools, and the SAVE ACT; the Florida NAACP is and has always been in the fight; what better way to take our fight to courts; even with the majority of judges not being on the side of “right”; we are putting them on record, because one day they will have to give an account to the greatest man we all know!
The Urgency of Voting Rights: Today, voting rights in this country are in critical condition. False claims about stolen elections have fueled efforts to roll back access to the ballot and revive discriminatory practices that disenfranchise voters. The continued delay in passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act is unacceptable. Without the protections once enforced through Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, jurisdictions with a history of discrimination will change election laws in ways that harm vulnerable communities. We cannot afford silence in the face of suppressive and discriminatory practices.
So I say to you today: join us in the ongoing work of voting rights, voter education, voter registration, voter mobilization, and voter protection. We cannot do it alone. If you want to see this country do the right thing, we must fight against the return of the OLD SOUTHERN STRATEGY, and we must continue the fight with the FIERCE URGENCY OF NOW. We must not only have leaders that lead, but we must have activists who are willing to take the mantle when called upon; when it’s time to organize, and when it’s time to fight.
THE TIME IS NOW, FOR US TO WORK TOGETHER, BECAUSE AGAIN, NOBODY IS COMING TO SAVE US (BUT GOD!)—
With that, I would like to end my conversation by sharing a story about leadership; it is called, THE GOOSE STORY:
“The Goose Story — Leadership, Teamwork and Standing by Each Other.” When you see geese flying along in “V” formation, you might consider what science has discovered as to why they fly that way. As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in “V” formation, the whole flock adds at least 71 percent greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own. “People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going more quickly and easily because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.”
When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone, and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front. “If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those people who are headed the same way we are.”
When the head goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wing, and another goose flies the point.
“It is sensible to take turns doing demanding jobs, whether with people or with geese flying south.” Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. “This is called “Support! What messages do we give when we honk from behind?”
Finally — and this is important — when a goose gets sick or is wounded, and falls out of formation, two other geese fall out with that goose and follow it down to lend help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly or until it dies, and only then do they launch out on their own, or with another formation to catch up with their group. “Liken unto the formation of a flock of geese, if we had the sense of a goose, let us inch by inch and mile by mile, in solidarity and in unity, stand with each other JUST like that.” So when you see a flock of geese flying south, remember this story, and know that there may be a leader, but they all work together.
Again, I thank you, President Shine and the West Volusia Branch of the NAACP for inviting me to share a few words with you this morning. I challenge each of you to step up and make the change in your community, because we will not go back to the old Southern Strategy. Now, let’s go to work!
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Cynthia Slater is the President of the Daytona Branch of the NAACP, and also serves as Second VP of the NAACP Florida State Conference.
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