Detroit Black Women Leaders Demand Inclusive Senate Debate: Call for Hill Harper to Withdraw from Exclusionary Event

Detroit’s most influential Black women leaders are taking a stand, demanding significant changes to the planned debate on Friday July 26 at 10am, live streamed on WGPR FM 10.5 for the Democratic U.S. Senate primary. Their calls for action come as WHPR, a Black-owned television station, announced a debate format that excludes live broadcasts, open press, and public attendance. These leaders, including Wayne County Commission Chair Alisa Bell, Metro Detroit Black Women’s President Lavonia Perryman, and several prominent mayors, have voiced their outrage. They emphasize the critical need for a Black woman journalist to be added as a moderator in the debate between candidates Hill Harper and Elissa Slotkin. The current moderators are Darwin Griffin, Truth to Power TV Host, WHPR and Bishop Edgar L. Vann II, Senior pastor of Second Ebenezer Church. The leaders argue that Black women deserve a seat at the table, particularly in a debate held in Detroit, a predominantly Black city. Alisa Bell didn’t mince words, stating, “We deserve a seat at the table and there is no excuse to not have a Black woman journalist on a panel at a Black-owned station, in the heart of a majority Black city within the wider majority...