WASHINGTON– Today, Damon Hewitt, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, issued the following statement marking the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder – a ruling that gutted key protections of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and removed federal oversight from states with a proven track record of racial voter suppression:
“As our nation reflects on the past 10 years since the Shelby County v. Holder decision, we find ourselves at a critical juncture in the fight for voting rights. The aftermath of Shelby unleashed a wave of voter suppression across the nation, as polling places shuttered and intimidation in the guise of ‘election integrity’ threatened our voices at the ballot box. Black communities faced the brunt of this damage. The Lawyers’ Committee-convened Election Protection Coalition saw historic numbers of voters seeking assistance from the non-partisan 866-OUR-Vote hotline, reporting increases in voter confusion, disinformation, and intimidation. In the face of these attacks, Black voters and other voters of color who have been so often disenfranchised fought back. They sent the message that this systematic disenfranchisement will not be tolerated. From coordinated protests and civil disobedience, to engaging in public discourse about the health and future of our democracy, voters flexed their power.
“Voters have also fought back in the courts. The Lawyers’ Committee played a pivotal role in using litigation and surviving portions of the Voting Rights Act to protect Black and brown voters We won summary judgment in a first-of-its-kind case against individuals who orchestrated a disinformation campaign involving thousands of misleading robocalls targeting Black voters in multiple states–information that came to the Lawyers’ Committee through a tip to our Election Protection hotline. The court found that the perpetrators, who have now been prosecuted for criminal offenses, intended to interfere with the right to vote. A federal court ruled in favor of our clients in a case challenging the alleged co-conspirators of the January 6th insurrection – a violent attempted coup based upon the anti-democratic Big Lie of election deniers. Just last month, the Supreme Court surprised many with its ruling in favor of Black voters in Alabama, who spoke truth to power by challenging the state’s congressional map denying them equal opportunity to participate in the political process. As a result of this type of resolve, we have witnessed significant milestones in Black political power, ranging from the Congressional Black Caucus’ membership growing to its largest size ever to the groundbreaking elections of a Black Vice President and the first a Black person to lead a political party in Congress.
“Even as we celebrate these achievements, we must remain ever-vigilant. While we acknowledge the progress made to safeguard the fundamental right to vote, our work is far from over. We must continue to demand further action from Congress to protect the voice and vote of Black communities. People are voting, but the obstacles they face make it far from easy. We cannot accept this as a new normal – a dystopian reality in which people face new burdens on the ability to vote and in which provocateurs question valid election results and basic functions of the democratic process. The Lawyers’ Committee will persist in our fight, both inside and outside of the courtroom, to build a future in which the voices, votes, and lives of Black voters matter – a future where every individual can exercise their constitutional right to participate in our democracy free and without barriers once and for all.”
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About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law – The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to mobilize the nation’s leading lawyers as agents for change in the Civil Rights Movement. Today, the Lawyers’ Committee uses legal advocacy to achieve racial justice, fighting inside and outside the courts to ensure that Black people and other people of color have the voice, opportunity, and power to make the promises of our democracy real. For more information, please visit https://lawyerscommittee.org
