The Supreme Court just struck down a key section of the landmark Voting Rights Act that requires jurisdictions with a history of racial discrimination to get approval from the Justice Department before changing voting laws.
The law, signed in 1965, is considered one of the most important pieces of civil rights legislation ever passed. In the last 10 years alone, the Voting Rights Act has helped stop Republican voter suppression laws in states like Virginia, North Carolina and Florida.
We have to get the law reinstated in places where voters desperately need protection from overreaching Republican governors and legislatures, before it’s too late. According to The New York Times, “State officials across the South are aggressively moving ahead with new laws requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls.” If passed, these new laws could effectively disenfranchise thousands of eligible voters.
Sign the petition to tell Congress to reinstate the Voting Rights Act.