Dear John,

The most important advancement in voting rights since the 19th Amendment, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, was undone by the Supreme Court in their 2013 Shelby decision.

The Voting Rights Act guaranteed that states could not set up discriminatory barriers to voting, such as overly stringent voter requirements or reducing access to voting sites in specific areas.

States that had shown voting discrimination in the past were required to get preliminary approval before making any changes in voting laws or procedures. But in Shelby, the Supreme Court threw out the method used to determine states had shown voting discrimination, thereby opening the floodgates to new voter suppression laws.

And the states took them up on this, especially those that had shown discrimination in the past. Over the last 11 years, states have passed over 100 different laws to restrict voter access. The burden of these laws has fallen mainly on communities of color, low-income voters, and those who identify as LGBTQ+.

For instance, district boundaries have been changed to disadvantage certain groups of voters, acceptable forms of voter ID have been strictly limited, and polling locations have been moved or eliminated to reduce access in certain areas.

There is a way to strengthen voting rights again: The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would significantly expand the government’s ability to respond to voting discrimination.

Send a message today to your senators and representatives, and demand they pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act! You can send a pre-written letter, or add your personal touch to make it more powerful.

Voter suppression laws are aimed especially at people of color, the elderly, low-income people, transgender people, and those with disabilities. In 2019, the Human Rights Campaign found intersectionality in the effects of voter discrimination, as the LGBTQ+ community and people of color reported feeling discouraged from voting to increasing degrees:

• 22% of LGBTQ+ adults

• 35% of LGBTQ+ adults of color

• 49% of transgender adults

• 55% of transgender adults of color

The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act will restore the 1965 protections by creating a new formula to determine which states are showing discriminatory patterns, as the Supreme Court recommended in their Shelby decision.

It will require the public announcement of any voting changes 180 days or more before an election, and it will enable the federal government to send observers to locations that have been historically at risk for voter suppression.

We must protect the right to vote. For democracy to work for everyone, it must include everyone.

Demand your members of Congress pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act today!

Thank you for helping to bring back the crucial protections of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action