If you were living in Alabama in the early 1960s and wanted to vote,
you first had to answer some very difficult questions.
friend,
If you were living in Alabama in the early 1960s and wanted to vote,
you first had to answer some very difficult questions.
At least if you were Black, you did.
You can see for yourself how challenging these questions are by taking
this sample test.
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Before you could even register to vote, you had to pass a
"literacy test," which typically included many questions
about the law and government, and was administered and evaluated by a
white elections official. While white applicants always seemed to get
the easiest questions, or perhaps even none, Black applicants got the
hardest.
When a Duke professor sent four questions from an Alabama literacy
test to every constitutional law professor in the country in 1965 and
asked for their impromptu answers, 70 percent of the responses were
wrong.
Literacy tests were one of the most effective ways the white power
structure in Alabama and across the Deep South kept Black Americans
from voting. Today, the SPLC is leading the fight against a
new wave of modern Jim Crow laws. Please make a special gift
today to help the SPLC defend voting rights and fight white supremacy.
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Donate
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When the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed, it ended moral and legal
atrocities like literacy tests, poll taxes and property ownership
requirements, and, for nearly 50 years, stood as a crowning
achievement of American democracy.
But in 2013, the Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision to overturn
critical provisions of the Voting Rights Act, paving the way for
states to enact a new wave of voter suppression laws.
Today, in the Deep South, conservative legislators in power work
overtime to disenfranchise voters, making it harder for Black and
Brown people to elect candidates of their choice. They are imposing
harsh voter identification laws, requiring returning citizens to pay
all legal fees before registering, restricting alternative voting
methods - particularly voting by mail - that have
historically expanded access to the ballot and reducing or even
eliminating the availability of drop boxes.
And with all that is at stake, we must stand up in the face of
injustice and fight back against the racist systems that continue
harming our communities. In response to the increased attacks on
our democracy, we are working to defend voting rights on three fronts:
* Restoring the Full Power of the Voting Rights Act. We will
continue to press Congress to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights
Advancement Act, which will restore the full power of the Voting
Rights Act, preventing states from passing anti-voter laws in
the Deep South.
* Increasing voter participation. We are conducting voter
registration and mobilization campaigns to ensure that voters
have their voices heard in local, state and federal elections.
In our Vote Your Voice project, we are partnering with a growing
network of nonprofits and community organizations across the
Deep South on creative and diverse voter outreach efforts over
the next 10 years.
* Removing barriers to the ballot. We're expanding
access to the ballot by fighting felony disenfranchisement laws
and economic barriers to the vote like a requirement to pay off
legal financial obligations as a pre-condition to voting.
We cannot afford to go back to the dangers of 1960s-style literacy
tests, poll taxes and other barriers designed to keep Black and Brown
people out of the voting booth. That's why we are asking for you
to support the SPLC's bold Voting Rights Action Plan by making a
generous contribution today. When you donate, you invest in fighting
white supremacy and continuing the vital work that builds civic power
for Black and Brown communities fighting for equitable access to the
ballot box.
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Donate
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This is not the America civil rights leaders like John Lewis, Dr.
Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks and so many others fought so hard to
create. And it's not the America anyone who shares their
commitment to justice and equality will ever accept.
Thank you for your commitment to defending the rights of all Americans
to participate in our democracy.
Sincerely,
Your friends at the Southern Poverty Law Center
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