AMU Emergency Management Opinion Public Safety

Voting Rights: Don’t Let Anyone Take Our Democracy From Us

Equal protection for all, or not

The [link url=”https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/voting-rights-act” title=”Voting Rights Act”] was signed into law in 1965 in concert with a number of civil rights legislative initiatives that were designed to end discrimination in our great country once and for all.

The act contained a provision for states with less-than-acceptable records of discriminatory behavior to be required to obtain permission from the federal government before making changes to voting rules and voter access to the polls.

In 2013, The Supreme Court struck down the part of the law that allowed the federal government to regulate discriminatory behavior by the states. Did the states take advantage of this? Judge for yourself. Here is [link url=”http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/with-voting-rights-act-out-states-push-voter-id-laws/” title=”an excellent rundown from PBS”].

Some state examples

Texas acted within hours. Using voter ID as the chosen suppression tool, Texas [link url=”https://www.texastribune.org/2016/07/20/appeals-court-rules-texas-voter-id/” title=”required everyone registering to vote”] to either have a passport (A PASSPORT!) or an original birth certificate. The law also put into effect a redistricting plan that was ruled discriminatory in 2011. Not surprisingly, the 5th Circuit Court overturned the law in total, holding that it placed an unreasonable burden on minorities, the poor, and the elderly.

South Carolina also resurrected a discriminatory law [link url=”http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/08/in-south-carolina-shockingly-candid-talk-about-voter-discrimination/261760/” title=”that had been disallowed in 2011″]. The law allows five different types of ID, and so far has not been overturned. However, [link url=”https://www.thenation.com/article/63756-reasons-why-racism-is-still-alive-in-south-carolina/” title=”that doesn’t mean it isn’t discriminatory”].

Wisconsin [link url=”http://www.prwatch.org/news/2016/05/13108/voter-suppression-laws-go-to-trial” title=”enacted similar measures”], including a restriction that there could only be one early voting center in each city. This in effect would require all early voters in cities to travel to one place, which could be miles away, to vote. This week, a federal court [link url=”http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/federal-judge-strikes-wisconsin-election-laws-41004749″ title=”threw out the entire slew of unconstitutional laws”].

Kansas passed laws [link url=”http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/01/opinion/sunday/voting-gets-harder-in-kansas.html” title=”that followed similar efforts in other states”]. Similarly, the law was [link url=”http://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-kansas-rejects-citizenship-proof-to-vote/” title=”tossed out by a federal court”].

North Carolina accomplished perhaps the most egregious act of unconstitutional voter suppression of all. When North Carolina officials began developing their suppression law, they first requested an analysis of voter behavior and habits, sorted by race. If a behavior was found to be utilized primarily by African-Americans–such as for example, voting on Sunday after church–the legislature made that behavior illegal. Five different behaviors were outlawed, all of which directly targeted minorities. The federal court [link url=”http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/07/29/3803405/breaking-federal-appeals-court-strikes-worst-voter-suppression-law-nation/” title=”mercifully ruled the entire effort unconstitutional”] in what the author termed a “slap-down.”

So what’s it all about?

Why does EDM care? Well, simply put, we have the greatest nation on Earth because it’s a democracy. Institutions like FEMA don’t exist in very many countries. In many countries around the world, the Red Cross and Doctors without Borders have to come in from outside because those nations can’t develop these capabilities for themselves.

But we–and we have–because we have the ability to listen all voices. And when a government comes along that’s not willing to listen to any voices, we throw them out on their butts. That’s what keeps us safe. That’s what keeps us strong.

Although this latest [link url=”http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/07/29/courts-smash-voter-suppression-just-in-time-for-election-day.html” title=”round of court decisions”] could be considered grounds for optimism, I’m not so sure.

Voter suppression still is, or could become, a national crisis if it allowed to succeed. So we can’t allow it to succeed. Make no mistake–those that are advocating voter suppression are behaving in deeply unpatriotic and un-American ways. This must not be allowed happen. So be vigilant. Be conscious of what your politicians — you know, those that swear to uphold the constitution — are really doing rather than what they’re supposed to be doing.

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” — Edmund Burke

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