60 Years of the Voting Rights Act: A Legacy Under Threat
The Voting Rights Act, enacted 60 years ago, faces significant challenges and erosion of its core provisions, particularly following a pivotal Supreme Court ruling in 2013.
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Overview
- The Voting Rights Act of 1965 followed the Civil Rights Act and aimed to eliminate discriminatory voting practices against Black voters.
- Key provisions included the end of poll taxes and literacy tests, and the establishment of preclearance for states with a history of discrimination.
- The 15th Amendment prohibits voting rights denial based on race, but the 2013 Supreme Court ruling in Shelby v. Holder weakened enforcement mechanisms.
- Current legal challenges, including a case from North Dakota, may further impact the ability of individuals and organizations to protect voting rights.
- As the Voting Rights Act marks its 60th anniversary, upcoming court cases will be crucial in determining its future and the integrity of voting rights.
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Analysis
Center-leaning sources cover the Voting Rights Act by providing a comprehensive, factual overview of its history, purpose, and ongoing legal challenges. They maintain an objective tone, focusing on historical context, legal definitions, and current court cases without employing loaded language or prioritizing specific political viewpoints, thereby demonstrating neutral reporting practices.
"The slow chipping away at the 60-year-old law has created a nation with an unequal distribution of voting rights, said Sean Morales-Doyle, director of the voting rights center at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University."
ABC News"The Voting Rights Act of 1965 ended the discriminatory practices against Black voters that were prevalent in many states, including poll taxes and literacy tests that allowed those voters to be turned away."
ABC News"The slow chipping away at the 60-year-old law has created a nation with an unequal distribution of voting rights."
Associated PressArticles (4)
Center (3)
FAQ
Shelby County v. Holder (2013) invalidated the coverage formula used in Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act, effectively ending the preclearance requirement in Section 5 for certain jurisdictions with histories of discrimination, thus weakening federal oversight over changes to voting laws in those states.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 sought to eliminate discriminatory voting practices such as poll taxes and literacy tests and established a preclearance process requiring certain states and localities with histories of discrimination to obtain federal approval before changing voting laws.
Following Shelby County, several states, including Texas, implemented restrictive voting laws like voter ID requirements and redrew district maps in ways that disproportionately burden Black voters and other communities of color, undermining the protections that previously existed under the Voting Rights Act.
Current legal challenges, including cases from states like North Dakota and racial gerrymandering cases such as Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, continue to test the scope and enforcement of voting rights protections established by the Voting Rights Act.
History
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