Supreme Court’s decision harms minorities
"With its ruling on the Voting Rights Act, the Supreme Court has taken
the country back to a time when racial minorities were unable to
participate equitably in the voting process. The Court’s unprecedented
decision is disgraceful to civil rights leaders and legislators who have fought
to preserve equal voting rights in this country. It reminds me of a time in our
history when minorities were prevented from voting because they had to pay a
“poll tax” before they could vote. The tax represented a mean-spirited
and vicious way of keeping hundreds of thousands of people from voting.
The objection to eliminating the poll tax was that it would allow people of
color to “flood the polls.”
I recall having to pay a poll tax to vote in Texas. The practice began
in 1902. It did not end until 1966. During those sixty-four years, hundreds of
thousands of our citizens were denied the right to vote, an opportunity to
participate in American democracy. The federal government prohibited the
use of a poll tax in national elections in 1964 with the passage of the 24th
amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The Court’s current assault on the Voting Rights
Act prevents the federal government from ensuring that states with a history of
racial discrimination will not enact voting methods and procedures that will
deny a very significant right and duty.
Prior to that time nine states, mostly located in
the southern United States, had to receive clearance or prior approval from the
Justice Department or a federal court before they could institute changes in
voting methods or engage in redistricting.
In its ruling, the Court did not alter Section
Five. Instead, it ruled that the formula, detailed in Section Four, used to
determine which states should be covered by Section Five went beyond
constitutional limits and used data that was outdated. The effect of that
ruling is to mute Section Five, and allow states to amend voting procedures and
practices as they see fit without fear of federal intervention.
Those who advocated for radical changes in the
Voting Rights Act said that increasing numbers of racial minorities
participated in state and national elections. They even pointed to the election
of President Barack Obama as a reason for the elimination of federal oversight
and intervention.
The reality is that since 2010, eight southern
states passed laws designed to make voting more cumbersome for racial
minorities. Various civil rights organizations and entities such as the
Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus have
consistently opposed the elimination of federal involvement in local elections.
Recently, a U.S.
Court of Appeals judge said that without Section Five of the Voting Rights Act
minority voters would suffer.
Efforts to lessen the
impact of the minority vote in Texas have been egregious. Last summer, a
federal court in Washington stated that a redistricting map enacted by the
Republican controlled legislature was “purposefully discriminatory.”
In the spring of 2012, the Texas NAACP and
Mexican American Legislative Caucus of the Texas House of Representatives went
to federal court to stop the state from requiring a photo ID in state
elections. A federal court agreed, finding that the law violated Section
Five of the Voting Rights Act.
Bipartisan coalitions
of members of both the House and Senate have historically supported the Voting
Rights Act and its provisions. In 2006, the Act was renewed for
twenty-five years. The vote in the House was 390 to 30, while the vote in
the Senate was 98 to zero. President George W. Bush signed the measure.
Simply stated, the Voting Rights Act is the
perpetuation of our democracy. We are a great country because all of our
citizens have the right to exercise the right to vote without fear of
intimidation.
Congress must now
come together to do what we all know is the right thing to do. We must once
again make the Voting Rights Act a principled piece of legislation that
protects all of our citizens, regardless of race, class or religious preference.
This is why we are Americans. This is fundamental to our freedom." - Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson
Source: The Hill - Op Ed
