John Lewis Voting Rights Act – It’s time for action

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There is no Negro problem. There is no Southern problem. There is no Northern problem. There is only an American problem. And we’re here tonight, as Americans, not as Democrats or Republicans were met here as Americans to solve that problem. -Lyndon B. Johnson

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts discuss the imperative to move quickly on the proposed John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Those dedicated to limiting the number of eligible voters and devising obstacles to voting have historically found effective ways to press their agenda whenever legal restraints are not in place.

A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• We need to push our representatives to pass voting rights legislation at the national level.  At a local level, we must vote for candidates that push to protect and expand voting rights. (0:21)
• The significant changes to voting rights in 2011. (20:45)
• Weighing the pros and cons of voter IDs and the last minute changes that happen in elections (26:36)

Report by Leadership Conference Education Fund on Polling place closures. Report of Committee on House Administration, Subcommittee on Elections, about justification and scope of 2019 bill passed by House. “Hours after Shelby County, Texas revived a previously blocked voter ID law. Within days, Alabama announced it would move to enforce a photo ID law it had previously refused to submit to the Department of Justice for preclearance.” https://cha.house.gov/sites/democrats.cha.house.gov/files/documents/Voting%20Rights%20and%20Election%20Administration%20in%20America_ONLINE_11-18-2019.pdf Lyndon address to joint session of Congress re 1965 VRA following “Bloody Sunday.” Includes video of address plus text. One of Johnson’s finest moments. “So it was at Lexington and Concord. So it was a century ago at Appomattox. So it was last week in Selma, Alabama.” NY Times article re extension of VRA July 2006. “Despite the progress these states have made in upholding the right to vote, it is clear the problems still exist,” said Senator Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois. “South Carolinians, you have come a long way,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from that state, which is among those covered by the law. “But we, just like every other part of this country, still have a long way to go.”

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