Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa is making headlines after the SUV she was being transported in reportedly hit a Black Lives Matter protester in Des Moines. The Des Moines Register reports that the incident happened Tuesday as a group of around “two dozen Des Moines Black Lives Matter activists” came to events Gov. Reynolds was appearing at in Steamboat Rock and Ackley. The activists were trying to get Reynolds to sign an executive order that would restore the voting rights of people who have completed their sentences after felony convictions. One of the group’s organizers, Jaylen Cavil, told the Register that he was standing in the driveway of Family Traditions Meat in Ackley, a processing plant where Gov. Reynolds was appearing. Cavil says he was standing in front of where Gov. Reynolds vehicle was to exit, hoping that the governor would roll down her window to talk with the Des Moines Black Lives Matter protesters.
According to Cavil, he was surprised that the driver hit him, and while he was uninjured, he was hit hard enough to be spun around and lifted onto the hood of the car. Iowa State Patrol spokesperson Sgt. Alex Dinkla told The Hill that the protester created the contact himself and it was not the fault of the SUV driver. “As the vehicle began to turn away from the protestor and onto the roadway, the demonstrator intentionally stepped in front of the slowly moving vehicle. The demonstrator had little to no physical reaction to any contact he created and the vehicle then entered the roadway.”
And while the Iowa State Patrol spokesperson says the act was unintentional, Cavil and two others say that there was no way the driver could not have seen him when accelerating through him. Cavil and other activists say that they will continue to follow Gov. Reynolds around from event to event until she makes good on the promise she made two weeks ago to restore voting rights to those with past felony convictions who have served time. Considering that the governor was once able to make a deal to get out of a felony DUI charge by pleading guilty to a lesser charge, one might hope that the personal experience would inform her decision making.
This is the time when activism is arguably at its most important. So far, politicians like Gov. Reynolds have signed legislation and made overtures towards racial equality and justice, but only in relatively superficial ways. A lot more action is required to make things right.