The Ohio Coalition on Black Civic Participation, also known as the Ohio Unity Coalition (OUC), is the state affiliate of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. The nonprofit is dedicated to increasing voter turnout in Black communities to the level seen when former President Barack Obama was on the ballot. ¹

Background

The Ohio Unity Coalition was formed in 2019. It is partnered with Ohio Voice, a left-leaning voter mobilization group that is largely funded by the Foundation to Promote Open Society. In 2021, Ohio Voice received a total of $380,000, more than 20% of its reported revenue, from the foundation, which is funded by philanthropist George Soros. ²

The OUC is partnered with the NAACP, the National Congress of Black Women, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, Community Mobilization Coalition, Freemasonry for Negroes, APRI, the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliances, and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. ³

Leadership

Pierrette Talley is the president and treasurer of Ohio Unity Coalition. She is a retired state officer of the Ohio AFL-CIO, a state-level chapter of the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of labor unions in the United States. ⁴

Deidra Reese is the secretary at OUC. Reese also works as a director at Ohio Voice, director of voter engagement for the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, and is the owner of Brown Girls Consulting. Prior to these positions, she worked as the executive director at the League of Women Voters. ⁵

Activities

In 2022, the Ohio Unity Coalition kicked off the Black Voter Empowerment campaign. In an interview with 13 Action News, executive director Pierrette Talley said the goal was to get Black voters as engaged as when former President Barack Obama was on the ballot. ⁶

In 2023, the OUC participated in a voting rights bus tour in Columbus to encourage “historically marginalized voters to have unfettered access to the ballot box.” Several other groups participated in this event as well, like the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, the Ohio NAACP, and the Black Voters Matter Fund. Members would stop at neighborhoods with low voter registration rates and higher unemployment rates and go door-to-door, assisting people to register to vote. The OUC set up a website that listed voter deadlines for elections and could easily help voters register.  ⁷ The coalition also partnered with the Toledo-Luca County Public Library and Lucas County Commissioners to help connect people to resources they need to attain an appropriate voter identification document. ⁸

Funding

In 2022, the Ohio Unity Coalition received $631,092 of funding from foundation support. Of that, $171,000 came from the BVM Capacity Building Institute. ⁹ In the same year, the NAACP Empowerment Programs gave $150,000. ¹⁰

The Black Voters Matter Fund, a left-of-center political advocacy organization that opposes voter identification laws, gave $10,000 to the OUC in 2021. ¹¹

1. “Black Voter Empowerment Campaign Kicks off in Toledo.” 13 Action News, July 1, 2022. https://www.13abc.com/2022/07/01/black-voter-empowerment-campaign-kicks-off-toledo/.
2. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – Foundation To Promote Open Society 2021 Form 990. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/263753801/202213209349101601/full.
3. “Who We Are.” Ohiounity.org. Accessed June 21, 2024. https://ohiounity.org/index.php/who-we-are/.
4. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – Ohio Coalition On Black Civic Participation 2022 Form 990. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/841943322/202313199349321456/full.
5. “Deidra Reese.” LinkedIn. Accessed June 19, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/deidra-reese-mpp-062a9750.
6. “Black Voter Empowerment Campaign Kicks off in Toledo.” 13 Action News, July 1, 2022. https://www.13abc.com/2022/07/01/black-voter-empowerment-campaign-kicks-off-toledo/.
7. Tebben, Susan. “Voting Rights Groups Engage Black Ohioans.” Ohio Capital Journal, November 7, 2023. https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/11/07/a-sleeping-giant-voting-rights-groups-engage-black-ohioans/
8. “Toledo Organizers Informing Community of New Voter ID Rules.” 13 Action News, June 5, 2023. https://www.13abc.com/2023/06/05/toledo-organizers-informing-community-new-voter-id-rules-with-library-event-canvassing/.
9. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – BVM Capacity Building Institute Inc 2022 Form 990. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/823835203/202303229349300325/full.
10. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – NAACP Empowerment Programs Inc 2022 Form 990. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/131084135/202323119349300037/full.
11. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – Black Voters Matter Fund Inc 2022 Form 990. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/813625061/202203429349301130/full.