10 Days In. Nearly 200 Miles Marched. And We Are Just Getting Started.
A progress update from the ground on 1000 Miles to Memphis—and three ways you can keep growing this movement for voting rights
Ten days ago we launched 1000 Miles to Memphis on a rainy day in Nashville. Today we are nearly 200 miles into a 1,000-mile march for voting rights. And here’s the most exciting part. What you have helped us build in these first ten days has exceeded our expectations, and we are still building inspiring momentum. Here is where we stand. Let’s Address This.
What You Have Helped Us Build So Far
Since launching on July 24 on the corner of 8th and Rosa Parks Ave in Nashville, TN, we have already held five organizing events in the first ten days. We have more than a dozen more planned over the next 25 days. Likewise, nearly 100 people have joined us to march on the ground through the pouring rain, the blistering heat, the side streets, and even on major highways. (I promise, we’re maintaining safety as a top priority). Hundreds more have shown up collectively at our events along the route. And tens of thousands of you are with us online—sharing, posting, amplifying, and holding this movement accountable to its mission. And finally, early analytics shows that our views for this march are already in the millions across social media.
In other words—we’re off to a great start and momentum is building.
None of this happens without community. And the communities that have shown up for us have been extraordinary.
The Organizations Leading the Charge
We are deeply grateful to the organizations that have partnered with us on the ground and will continue to work alongside us as we march toward Memphis. While Just Win Humanity will be directly supporting these orgs, I link each of them and encourage you to support them directly as well.
The Equity Alliance. StandUp Nashville. NAACP Nashville. Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition. The Apex Museum in Atlanta (event forthcoming).
These organizations represent exactly what this march is about—rooted, hyperlocal, community-driven organizing that does not wait for permission and does not stop when the cameras move on. We are honored to march alongside them. Below is my one on one interview with Odessa Kelly, Executive Director of Stand Up Nashville.
The Organizations Helping Fund This Voting Rights March
Moreover, we are profoundly grateful to our sponsors who put real resources behind this movement when it mattered most:
ActBlue—our Gold Sponsor—whose support made this launch possible and whose commitment to voting rights infrastructure is unmatched.
Feel Good Action and Common Defense—our Bronze Sponsors—whose early investment sent a signal to the entire movement that this march was real, urgent, and worth backing.
These organizations are not sitting on the sidelines. They are leading by example. And we are asking you to do the same. If you are reading this, I am asking you commit to at least one of the following. Ideally two. And if you can, all three.
How You Can Get Involved
ONE: Show Up. Walk a mile, a day, or a full leg of the route.
TWO: Donate. 1,000 Miles to Memphis is a project of Just Win Humanity—a 501(c)(3) public charity. Small dollar donations make all the difference in the world.
THREE: Register Yourself and Your Network. You do not have to be in Nashville or Memphis to register voters. You can do it right now, from wherever you are.
Closing Thought
We are off to a great start, and the goal is to keep building. You can help make that happen. Sign up to march, donate if you can, and definitely register yourself and at least 10 friends to vote. As you post online, use hashtags #1000Miles and #CourageNow on every post. Follow and tag @JustWinHumanity on Instagram so your community can find us.
I will continue to provide updates as often as possible throughout this march. Thank you for your incredible and continued support. It is truly making all the difference.
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At that rate it might take longer than 30 days to make 1000 miles, but that's not as important as the good you're all doing along the way. Every person you talk to helps get the word out and builds support. Every discussion matters and somewhere a mind is changed.
Children will see you - and they remember.
Robert Arnold is a national treasure.