FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Media@dcaclu.org
WASHINGTON - On the 41st anniversary of Bloody Sunday, the American
Civil Liberties Union today launched a new campaign, "Every Voice. Every Vote.
Renew the Voting Rights Act" to raise public awareness and urge Congress to
reauthorize the expiring sections of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965. The
campaign launch was marked by the release of two comprehensive reports that
detail the need for the renewal of that historic civil rights law.
"The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, and an essential
protection of that right is the Voting Rights Act," said Caroline Fredrickson,
Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "Every voice must be heard
and every vote must be counted. State and local governments continue to adopt
voting laws, practices and procedures that deny equal access to voting - without
the Voting Rights Act, there would be little protection against these efforts to
deny some of us our right to vote. The Voting Rights Act is necessary to help
ensure that every American citizen is able to exercise the franchise."
The launch of the campaign coincides with the release of two new ACLU reports
outlining the continued need for the act. The first report, The Case for
Extending and Amending the Voting Rights Act: Voting Rights Litigation,
1982-2006, is an 867 page report documenting 293 ACLU cases brought in 31
states to protect the right to vote and challenge discrimination in voting.
"Our report makes it clear that minority voters have continued to face
discrimination since the Voting Rights Act was last reauthorized in 1982," said
Laughlin McDonald, Director of the ACLU Voting Rights Project. "While we have
come a long way over the last twenty-five years, the expiring provisions of the
Voting Rights Act are still necessary to ensure that minority voters are able to
fully participate in the democratic process. Without these protections, it is
likely that many of the advances of the past few decades would be wiped out by
new barriers to voting."
The second report, Promises to Keep: The Impact of the Voting Rights Act
in 2006, details the practical effects of the Voting Rights Act and
discusses the impact of the law in eliminating discrimination and granting
access to the ballot box for minorities.
The ACLU has urged Congress to renew the provisions of the law that will
expire in 2007 unless Congress reauthorizes them. The sections include: Section
5, requiring jurisdictions with significant histories of discrimination in
voting to get federal approval of any new voting practices or procedures;
Section 203, ensuring that voters with limited English proficiency get the help
they need at the polls; and Sections 6-9, authorizing the attorney general to
appoint federal election observers where there is evidence of attempts to
intimidate minority voters at the polls.
On Wednesday, ACLU President Nadine Strossen will testify before the House
Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and present the findings of the
reports. Legislation to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act is likely to be
introduced within the next several weeks.
The ACLU also unveiled a new educational poster that is being distributed to
libraries, civil rights museums, and schools documenting the history of voting
rights in the United States, as well as the latest episode of The ACLU
Freedom Files, a revolutionary series from Robert Greenwald. "Voting Rights"
-- which airs March 9 on Link TV and March 11 on Court TV -- documents how
Native Americans, African Americans and other minorities fight for their right
to participate in the democratic process.
As a part of the "Every Voice. Every Vote." campaign, the ACLU will conduct a
nation-wide tour to discuss the Voting Rights Act reauthorization in Birmingham,
Alabama, Nashville, Tennessee, Austin, Texas and in South Carolina. ACLU staff
will be touring these cities throughout March and April to raise awareness of
the act.
"Congress must reauthorize all of the expiring sections of the Voting Rights
Act," said LaShawn Warren, an ACLU Legislative Counsel. "This renewal must
happen without changes that would weaken the law’s original intent, to ensure
that minorities have equal and unhindered access to the ballot box.
Reauthorization of the act is a truly bipartisan effort. People of all political
stripes agree that every American should have their right to vote
guaranteed."
The ACLU reports and more information about the Voting Rights
Act can be found at:
http://www.votingrights.org
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