“Am I gonna see you on February Fifth?” called Jahmal Henderson (at left in photo) to a woman in a third-story window as he returned to Newhallville to try to sell his neighbors on a symbol of hope called Barack Obama.
Henderson, who’s 30, grew up in the neighborhood. Late Saturday morning, when the streets were still quiet, he returned to ring doorbells there in support Obama’s presidential bid, peddling hope in a neighborhood that traditionally has found little reason to believe in the redemptive power of politics.
The woman in the third-story window didn’t want to talk much. “It’s cold out!” she said before pushing the window shut.
Elsewhere, Henderson’s message seemed to resonate with some elderly, African-American voters revved up about seeing a brother of color in office — even though Henderson himself isn’t sure how he’ll vote in the state’s Democratic presidential primary Feb. 5.
“I’ll be there. I’ll do it. No problem!” pledged one woman who answered the door wearing Cheerios pajamas pants. The 72-year-old said her lungs were too weak to help campaign, but “you can count on me” to vote for Obama.
Wearing a black knit cap and a UNITE HERE! T‑shirt, Henderson walked beside Lisa Bergmann (at right in photo above). Bergmann, a 26-year-old local union organizer, gave Henderson a tutorial in the art of door-knocking as they made their way along Pond Street. Henderson used a gentleman’s manner and a soft, personal touch.
“Let’s make a change for the country, sir,” Henderson told James Jackson. Jackson wouldn’t disclose his vote but said he had “no doubt” his wife was going for Obama.
“You and your wife have a blessed day,” said Henderson, dropping off some literature and heading on down the street.
The next home proved a harder sell: An elderly man opened the door. He wasn’t on their voter list; he was just visiting. He heard Henderson’s pitch and slowly pushed the door closed.
“Was it me?” Henderson asked Bergmann.
“No,” she assured him, “the door was open and it’s cold.”
Saturday’s door-knocking adventure was part of Henderson’s internship with the union-backed advocacy group Connecticut Center for a New Economy, where he’s learning community organizing skills. The UNITE HERE! union, which represents hotel and service workers across the country, is backing Obama’s White House bid. New Haven unions haven’t officially taken sides, but some local organizers are jumping in the race, communicating that national endorsement to voters.
In Newhallville, Henderson was up against a history of disenfranchisement. He was bringing a message of hope in the political system to voters like William Rose, a retired plumber.
“They make a lot of promises,” grumbled Rose, “then when they get into office, it’s another story.”
Many voters were noncommittal, but there was evidence that the inspiration radiating from the campaign of America’s would-be first black president had reached a few Newhallville homes.
It could be felt in the Elizabeth Street sitting room of a woman named Patricia, who invited the door-knockers inside to warm up.
Taking off his hat and sitting down on a couch, Henderson gave a personal pitch: “He’s a grassroots community organizer from Chicago. He connects with me and who I am. That’s why I’m voting for him.”
Patricia said her vote was private, but her voice had a positive ring when she spoke of the young Illinois senator: “He’s going strong to the point where I almost don’t believe it. I think it’s going to happen.”
Next door, her elderly neighbor, who had been talking to the door-knockers from over a balcony, scuttled down the stairs when she heard the pair had Obama literature.
“It’s good to see you out here,” she said. “Get dem young ones out to vote. It’s important!”
As he walked away from her house, Henderson revealed he isn’t so sure about his own vote — he’s “on the fence” between Obama and Hillary Clinton. But he said he felt a vibe of enthusiasm from the door-knocking trip.
“There’s a connection in the African-American community,” he said. “They want to see a man of color in office.”
“An African-American or a woman,” Henderson said, “it’s going to be a drastic change — the biggest change since George Washington was running around. That’s why it makes you feel good.”