Come Alive October Five event encourages residents on Milwaukee's north side to register to vote

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- As people came by the MLK Heritage Health Center on Tuesday, Oct. 5 for their COVID-19 vaccines and mammograms in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, one organization was there to get them registered to vote too. 

"We want people to Come Alive October Five," said Gregory Lewis, executive director of Souls to the Polls. 

It's an all-inclusive public health event called Come Alive October Five. As people get their check-ups they can get help registering to vote. 

Souls to the Polls Executive Director Gregory Lewis said it was important to host the event on the north side. 

"We'd like to give people the opportunity to increase power on this side of town, so we won't be left out of everything," said Lewis.

Lewis said registering early is important so people don't run into unnecessary hurdles on election day. 

"That's why we like to do early voting, absentee, drop-box voting." said Lewis. "Because those things frustrate a community that already don't believe in the system." 

This is the second year the event is being held in Milwaukee. Pamela Clark came up with the idea during the last election cycle. "Come Alive October Five" is a historical slogan. It was used in 1982, when the first Black mayor ran for office, Harold Washington.

"[It was] this big event where they got people to come out on Oct. 5 to register to vote. Picture that in 1982. And so last year in 2020 we brought it here to Milwaukee." 

The Harold Washington Legacy Committee is now organizing a similar event in Chicago to get more people registered to vote. 

They hope to get thousands of people registered by November 2022.