The National Commission on Voting Rights (NCVR), led by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, released a groundbreaking national report, “Protecting Minority Voters: Our Work is Not Done.” The report reveals where and how minorities continue to experience discrimination in the United States. Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina and Georgia rank as the worst offenders.
“This report shows that racial discrimination in voting is a widespread and ongoing problem,” said Barbara Arnwine, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the lead organization supporting the NCVR. “In the past 20 years, we’ve seen repeated attempts by states and localities with the worst records of voting discrimination to make it harder for minorities to register and cast their ballots. The record presents a powerful case for why we need to continue to provide protections to all voters.”
The report offers a comprehensive assessment of discriminatory voting practices since 1995, including legal cases filed on behalf of minority voters; analysis of restrictive state voting laws and practices that make it harder for minorities to vote; and highlights from the testimony received from the hundreds of witnesses at 25 public hearings organized by the National Commission.