FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 6, 2021

CONTACT: media@colorofchange.org

 

COLOR OF CHANGE: FIFTY SIX YEARS AFTER VOTING RIGHTS ACT, BLACK VOTERS NEED NEW FEDERAL PROTECTIONS TO SAFEGUARD THIS RIGHT 

Rashad Robinson, Color Of Change president, issued the following statement on the anniversary of the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965:

“Fifty six years after the passage of the Voting Rights Act, Black voters continue to transform the nation, making it both fairer and stronger. No progressive piece of legislation — and no progress in this country —  could have happened without Black voters. Yet, decades after this ‘crown jewel’ of the Civil Rights Movement became law, dangerous voter suppression bills have been passed in state legislatures across the country — a brazen effort to punish Black people for last year’s historic turnout and undermine future elections. President Biden, Senate Majority Leader Schumer, and Senate Democrats owe an incredible debt to Black voters, and yet they are failing to act. 

“Right now, this nationwide assault on our voting rights is a five-alarm fire. Since the Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby County vs. Holder decision gutted the Voting Rights Act, Republicans have continued to whittle away at the right to vote in unconscionable ways. Gerrymandering, racially driven voter roll purges, and the corporatization of politics have given outsized influence to a small group of wealthy and overwhelmingly white voters. And the courts have been transformed into a radically conservative engine for blocking progressive legislation and maintaining white supremacy, paving the way for rampant voter suppression. If this continues, the entire country will be harmed — not just Black voters. 

“Yet nothing continues to cause more damage to voting rights in the United States than the Jim Crow Senate filibuster. For decades, the filibuster has been a continuous threat to racial justice in this country from blocking anti-lynching legislation to protecting racist poll taxes. Once again, senators are using the Jim Crow filibuster to stall legislation that would provide desperately-needed voter protections like H.R. 1 and H.R. 4.

“The Voting Rights Act was brought into existence by fearless leaders fighting for freedom in every way they knew how. Black leaders from every community — and Black people in every community —pioneered new ways to organize and build power. They demonstrated the transformative impact of Black power and Black organizing. Today, we carry the legacy of freedom fighters like late Congressman John Lewis and Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party leader Ella Baker as we link arms with a new generation of the movement to hold leaders accountable for racist voter suppression.

“Voting rights is the number one issue in America today. Nothing can change in this country if Black people can’t vote fully, fairly, and freely. Our collective future depends on our ability to access the polls — the most critical lever of power we the people have. We call on President Biden to use the full power of his office to ensure every Black voter in America can safely and securely cast their ballot. We will continue to apply pressure to the Senate, which is going on recess while the country desperately awaits a solution on voting rights. And we will continue to pressure Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats to reform the Jim Crow filibuster and immediately pass legislation to protect this sacred right.” 

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About Color of Change:

Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by over 1.4 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America. Visit www.colorofchange.org