The suspension of five years of a device such as a literacy test was used as a prerequisite in order for
The suspension of five years of a device such as a literacy test was used as a prerequisite in order for
Before the passing of the Voting Rights Act by the United States Congress in 1965, there used to be racial discrimination in the voting system. Poor African Americans, Hispanic people and even white women were not allowed to cast their vote during election. According to textbook, these people were prohibited from voting by implementing different techniques for the voting such as poll tax, white primary. The poor African American People as well as white women, and Hispanic people were unable to afford the poll tax that was mandatory for the participation in the voting process (p274-275). At that time, even it was required to be a member of Democratic Party to be nominated as a candidate for office.…
Being forced to participate in an activity against your will is not a good feeling. Often a democracy like the United states will require you to do something without them slowing down to realize the many consequences the particular topic can generate. The right to vote is a big deal, it’s so important that most people equate it with democracy itself, but Americans should not be required to vote because it does not make our democracy stronger, there would be more uninformed voters voting, it would cost the nation a lot more money, and choosing not to vote is a right. Compulsory voting should not be permitted because it wouldn’t make our democracy any stronger. Mandatory voting will only make our country weaker because voting “just to vote” will encourage ignorant voting (Document G).…
Berman takes time to dissect the events that follow the 2008 election. Berman states that after former president Obama’s success, “three hundred and ninety five new voting restrictions were introduced in forty nine states” (18). These laws made efforts to vote increasingly difficult. Some of these laws include: government issued voter identification cards, purging voter rolls, and curtailing early voting. Berman argues that these aspects were targeting young people, African Americans, and women.…
On the day of August 6, 1965, during the height of racial segregation and discrimination, the Voting Rights Act was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. This particular act strived to end the bias notion and harsh discrimination toward African Americans, particularly when voting. Congress later made changes to such an act as it needed refining and more clarification. This Act enforced both the fourteenth and fifthteenth amendment, as those were and are still the primary amendments pertaining to the rights of voters and the election process. According to the Department of Justice, this Act serves to be one of the most significant legislation in U.S. history as it changed our country and viewpoints for the better.…
Weeks before he leaves office, the governor of Kentucky on Tuesday issued an executive order that will immediately grant the right to vote to about 140,000 nonviolent felons who have completed their sentences. The order by Gov. Steven L. Beshear, a Democrat, was cheered by advocates for criminal justice reform and civil rights, who said it would place Kentucky’s policy more in line with others across the nation and was consistent with a trend toward easing voting restrictions on former inmates. Kentucky had been one of just three states imposing a lifetime voting ban on felons unless they received a special exemption from the governor. Florida and Iowa still carry the lifetime ban. “Once an individual has served his or her time and paid…
But with that, the southern states could still impose voting restrictions based on literacy or property qualifications, and the people that would most likely be targeted were African…
Schnell in 1949, when a Federal court struck down biased dispensations of the literacy test. In 1965 Congress put an end to literacy tests in the South with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and in 1970 ended it on a national scale. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 banned the poll tax in state elections while the Supreme Court declared poll taxes unconstitutional and a direct violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. After the enactment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Congress addressed widespread voting injustices against blacks, thus pushing voting rights advocates to push for federal legislation to remove remaining barriers to voter registration.…
In 1937, a white man brought suit against Georgia’s poll tax, alleged violations of the 14th amendment and the 19th amendment. During the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, voting right activists in the South were dealt with various way of being mistreated and violence. The voters right bill was passed on May 26, 1965. In 1975, Congress recognized the need to protect citizens that could not read or speak English well enough to participate in the political process and expand the protections of the Voting Rights Act to…
“In Alabama, the number of Negroes registered to vote has increased by 5.2 percent between 1958 and 1965 to a total of 19.4 percent of those eligible”(Katzenbach). The ascension of black voters displayed the achievement of Voting Rights Act. It was an essential point for African-American society to have their political…
In the year of 2016 the time will come for us, as a country, to decide on who should be the next president of the United States. In Texas, as you go to the booth to cast your ballot, you are required to carry a state-issued photo I.D. in order to vote. To some this is an intrusion of government in a place where it does not belong, and to others this is a welcomed change. We will take a closer look at what this law really means for those living in Texas and then you may decide for yourself.…
Blum, Edward. The Unintended Consequences of Section 5 of the Voting Rights . Washington, D.C.: AEI Press, 2007. 88. Print. 4.…
On June 25, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled by a 5-4 vote in Shelby County v. Holder to strike down two main provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA). The first, Section 4(b), contained the coverage formula that determined which jurisdictions are subject to preclearance based on their histories of discrimination in voting. Section 5, which was rendered invalid by proxy, was the actual provision that required certain states and local governments to obtain federal preclearance before implementing new voting laws and practices. Votes in this case were clearly divided among ideological lines, and there were fundamental differences in the interpretation of the law relative to the case at hand and the issue of racism and discrimination at large. Using a legal realist approach to jurisprudence forwarded by Jerome Frank in “Law and the Modern Mind”, this paper will explore both the majority ruling and…
In 1776, any white male that owned property in the United States had the right to vote in the local and national election. Today, this country has come a long way in voting rights and any eligible adult can vote if they meet some basic requirements. Looking specifically at Alaska, an individual has voting rights if they are: 1) a U.S. Citizen; 2) a resident in Alaska 30 days before an election; 3) 18 years or older; 4) not convicted felon or a convicted felon with voting rights restored; and 5) not registered to vote in another state. If a person meets these qualifications, all they need to do is complete a Voter Registration application and submit it to the Division of Elections for approval.…
With the Presidential Election fast approaching once more, America is again reminded of the importance of the vote in our democratic society. Equal rights allows everyone to cast their vote on who should be moved into power. But it was not always like that. It is common knowledge that due to voting qualifications woman haven 't always enjoyed the luxury of participating in political affairs nor have African-Americans. However it is less known that even some adult white males were excluded from the realm of governmental affairs.…
In the United States, according to Uggen et al, there are roughly 234,564,100 people who are of voting age. However, because of the felon disenfranchising laws, about 5,852,180 people are not allowed to vote. That is approximately 2.5% or 1 out of every 40 people barred from voting because of previous or current felony conviction (Uggen et al, ). This is the highest it has been since the 1960s.…