The Fight Back Begins. Organizers Respond to Attacks on Voting Rights #TheOtherSideOfChange
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Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Supreme Court rulings are actively facilitating the rollback of voting rights, particularly through gerrymandering in Southern states.
- ❖Civil rights veterans are witnessing a disheartening reversal of progress, yet their resolve is inspiring new, intergenerational activism.
- ❖Effective resistance requires a multi-pronged approach: legislative protest, comprehensive voter education, and a long-term strategy to rebalance the judiciary.
Insights
1Supreme Court Decisions Enable Rapid Voter Suppression
Following rulings like *Louisiana v. Clay*, Southern states like Florida and Tennessee immediately redrew congressional maps, often eliminating Black-majority districts. This swift action demonstrates a prepared and coordinated effort to dilute Black votes, as seen with the Alabama congressional map deemed racially discriminatory by a lower court but allowed by the Supreme Court.
Adria Walker reports that Florida redrew maps the same day as the decision, and Tennessee started redrawing theirs immediately, indicating states were 'lying in wait and ready to pounce.' The Supreme Court permitted Alabama to use a racially discriminatory congressional map, eliminating one of the only seats representing Black voters.
2Civil Rights Elders Face Devastation but Inspire Continued Fight
Black elders who fought for voting rights are experiencing profound devastation as they witness those rights being rolled back in their lifetime. Despite this, their resilience and commitment to the struggle serve as a powerful galvanizing force for younger generations, reminding them that the fight is far from over.
Adria Walker interviewed Congressman Benny Thompson, whose father died without ever voting, and civil rights activist Flonzy Brown Wright, who, in her 80s, draws strength from her ancestors who fought with even less, emphasizing that 'the fight ends here' is not an option.
3The South Leads in Both Suppression and Resistance
Historically, the South has often pioneered problematic policies that later spread nationwide. Currently, it is a primary battleground for voter suppression tactics like gerrymandering and changing polling sites. However, it is also a hub of robust, inter-state, and inter-regional grassroots organizing and resistance efforts.
Adria Walker notes that 'the South will lead in something typically problematic, but the South will lead in something and then other states will implement that similar or the exact same policy.' Mercedes Fulbright details how redistricting started in Texas and spread across the South, with Dallas County experiencing polling site changes on election day.
4Progressives Must Adopt a Multi-Decade Strategy for Judicial Reform
The current Supreme Court's composition is the result of a multi-decade plan by conservatives to stack federal courts. To counter this, progressives and leftists must commit to a long-term strategy that includes electing state supreme court members, appointing federal judges, and expanding the number of Supreme Court seats to restore and protect rights.
Mercedes Fulbright states that 'the right has had a multi-decade plan to pack and stack the federal courts' since the 1960s, and progressives need to play a 'long game' to 'stack the courts in favor of progressives' by the 2028 election and beyond.
Bottom Line
The Supreme Court's upcoming decisions on birthright citizenship, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), and transgender sports bans are deeply interconnected with voting rights, disproportionately affecting Black and marginalized communities.
These seemingly disparate legal battles are part of a broader attack on civil liberties and human rights. A loss in one area can weaken protections in others, creating a cumulative impact on vulnerable populations.
Advocates need to highlight the interconnectedness of these issues to build broader coalitions and mobilize diverse communities, recognizing that a threat to one group's rights is a threat to all.
Key Concepts
Political Memory
The concept, highlighted by Derek Bell, that a lack of historical awareness regarding past periods of Black political power (e.g., Reconstruction) creates a void, making it harder to understand and combat current systemic attacks on voting rights. Understanding this history is crucial for sustained activism.
The Long Game
The strategy, employed by conservatives over decades, to systematically pack and stack federal courts with judges aligned with their agenda. Progressives are urged to adopt a similar multi-decade approach to elect and appoint judicial members who will protect and expand rights.
Lessons
- Support Southern grassroots organizations like Mississippi Votes, the People's Advocacy Institute, and Alabama Values, as they are on the front lines of voter protection and resistance.
- Engage in comprehensive voter education efforts, informing communities about new voting laws, polling site changes, and how to research candidates (especially judicial ones) before election day.
- Advocate for a long-term strategy to reshape the judiciary, pushing presidential candidates and elected officials to commit to expanding the Supreme Court and appointing progressive judges at all levels.
Countering Voter Suppression and Building Political Power
**Monitor Supreme Court Decisions**: Regularly track upcoming Supreme Court rulings, especially those related to civil rights, immigration, and electoral processes, as they often trigger immediate legislative responses.
**Support Local Organizing**: Invest in and amplify the work of state-based grassroots organizations, particularly in the South, which are often the first to identify and resist voter suppression tactics.
**Implement Robust Voter Education**: Develop and disseminate clear, accessible information about changing voting laws, polling locations, ballot structures (especially for judicial races), and permissible voter aids (e.g., bringing notes into polling places).
**Demand Judicial Reform**: Pressure political leaders to commit to a multi-decade strategy for judicial reform, including expanding federal courts and appointing judges who will uphold and protect democratic rights.
**Build Intersectional Coalitions**: Recognize the interconnectedness of various rights (voting, citizenship, LGBTQ+ rights) and build broad coalitions to fight against systemic attacks that affect multiple marginalized communities.
Notable Moments
Adria Walker recounts the story of civil rights activist Flonzy Brown Wright, who, in her 80s, draws strength from her ancestors who fought with 'so much less' and refuses to believe the fight ends now.
This anecdote powerfully illustrates the intergenerational nature of the struggle for voting rights and the enduring resilience required to combat systemic oppression, connecting past sacrifices to present-day activism.
Mercedes Fulbright describes how new laws in Texas changed polling sites on election day, forcing historically Democratic voters to scramble to new locations, often missing the chance to vote.
This highlights a specific, insidious tactic of voter suppression that goes beyond gerrymandering, directly impacting voter access and demonstrating the need for proactive voter education and support.
Quotes
"We can never be truly free if our freedom is only permissible by inflicting violence and harm on other people because eventually those same tactics come back to harm us."
"We are nowhere near as brave as our ancestors and what they had to sacrifice. Like, we're talking about blood, sweat, and tears, truly bodies on the line, not knowing if they were going to make it home from a protest."
"For me, she's an elder. She's in her 80s. She's someone to look up to. And she told me about how she kept thinking about her elders and her ancestors. And you know, they fought with so much less than she had. Why would she think that the fight ends here?"
"The right has had a multi-decade plan to pack and stack the federal courts. And so for us, I think there's an opportunity for progressives and leftists... to play this long game."
Q&A
Recent Questions
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