The right to vote – to participate fully and fairly in the political process – is the foundation of our democracy. Yet for years after the Civil War, many Americans were denied this fundamental right of citizenship. Unconscionable violence and discriminatory obstacles such as poll taxes, literacy tests and grandfather clauses were used to deny African American citizens the right to vote in many states, especially Southern states.
During the 1960s, many brave men and women fought against bigotry and injustice to secure this most basic right for all Americans. The price paid by those allied with the Civil Rights Movement was high: churches were burned and bombed, people were beaten and shot, and some were killed.
From courage and perseverance, the Voting Rights Act (VRA), the “crown jewel” of our civil rights statutes, was born. Enacted in 1965, the Act provided extensive protection to minority communities by prohibiting any voting practice that would abridge the right to vote on the basis of race. Any “test or device” for registering or voting was forbidden, effectively abolishing poll taxes and literacy tests.
The VRA also required state and local political jurisdictions with a documented history of discrimination to submit any proposed changes to their voting laws to the U.S. Attorney General or to federal judges for “pre-clearance” before the changes could take effect, thereby ensuring that the federal government has the ability to prevent discriminatory voting laws before they are implemented. This “pre-clearance” provision continues to protect voters today by focusing attention on areas where discrimination in voting continues to be a problem.
In 1975, the Voting Rights Act was expanded to protect the voting rights of significant language minority voters – such as Latinos, Native Americans, Asian Americans and Alaskan Natives – by requiring language assistance at the polls. This critical provision helps ensure all voters have the opportunity to cast a ballot they can understand.
Unlike other parts of the Voting Rights Act, the “pre-clearance” provision and the language assistance provision will expire this coming year if Congress fails to act extend them.
It is critically important that Congress quickly enact H.R. 9, the bipartisan, bicameral Voting Rights Act Reauthorization, which strengthens and renews the expiring provisions of the Voting Rights Act for another 25 years and reaffirms an enduring principle of our democracy: that every citizen is guaranteed the right to vote.
No delays or efforts to weaken this important bill should be tolerated and it should be promptly sent to the President’s desk for his signature.
The Voting Rights Act has played a key role in reversing the widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans and other minorities fostered by segregation and oppression. The success of the VRA has led to significant political achievement and greater minority representation at all levels of government. According to the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, today there are more than 9,100 African American and 6,000 Latino elected officials across the country and the number of Asian Americans holding elected office has tripled.
While substantial progress has been made in the area of voting rights over the last 40 years, we must continue to create a more just, fair and equal society. The Voting Rights Act was one of the nation’s most crucial civil rights victories and memorializes those who marched, struggled, and died to secure the right to vote for all Americans.
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