Dear John,

This week, Donald Trump signed an executive order attempting to place new restrictions on voting and next week Republicans appear to be preparing to double down by passing the so-called SAVE Act which limits what kind of identification are allowed to even register.

Still, the courts could stop Trump’s likely illegal order and, if we mobilize, we might be able to stop Congress too. But instead of sending another letter against the SAVE Act, which other organizations are doing too, today, I’d like to ask us to show support for what we want instead in addition to what we’re against.

I am remembering the words of the late civil rights activist, Georgia Congressman John Lewis. During times of profound injustice and inequality, John Lewis was the conscience of America, a bastion of virtue who inspired all of us to seek a more just society. In 2018, he gave us a powerful call to action:

“I gave of my blood on that bridge in Selma 53 years ago. Almost died. Some of my friends and colleagues were murdered in Mississippi and other places. I’m not asking any of you to give any blood. I’m just asking you to go and vote like you’ve never voted before! We have to vote! The vote is the most powerful nonviolent instrument or tool we have in a democratic society, and we must use it! Go out and vote! It is in our hands… And we must do it. Let’s go to the polls and vote like we’ve never voted before. We can do it!”

John Lewis didn’t just speak these words, he lived them. As a young man, he helped lead the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, in 1965, enduring brutal attacks from police in the nonviolent protest for voting rights. His sacrifice and courage helped push Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act (VRA) that same year, a landmark law that protected the fundamental right to vote for millions of Americans.

For nearly 50 years, the VRA was a bipartisan safeguard against voter suppression, requiring states with a history of discrimination to get federal approval before enacting restrictive voting laws. But in 2013, the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision gutted these protections, opening the floodgates to voter suppression efforts nationwide.

In the years since, more than 100 restrictive voting laws have been passed – laws that disproportionately target Black, Indigenous, Latino, young, disabled, and low-income voters.

As we mark the 60th anniversary of the Selma march, the best way we can honor John Lewis’s legacy is to restore and strengthen the VRA by passing the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. This legislation is not just a response to past injustices – it is a necessary shield against the growing threats to democracy today.

Tell your representative: Pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act now. It is crucial for the protection of our nation’s democracy.

The consequences of Shelby v. Holder have been dire. Across the country, states have closed polling places, imposed strict voter ID laws, purged voter rolls, and restricted early and mail-in voting – deliberately erecting actual barriers to the ballot box. Millions of voters now face unnecessary and discriminatory hurdles to exercising their fundamental right.

And the attacks on voting rights are escalating. As I wrote above, Congress is now considering the so-called SAVE Act, a law designed to further suppress voting among women, people of color, seniors, low-income Americans, and naturalized citizens by making it even harder for eligible voters to cast their ballots.

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act is the positive vision and necessary response to these anti-democratic efforts. It will restore federal oversight in states with a history of voter suppression, ensuring that changes to election laws do not discriminate against vulnerable communities. It will guarantee that all Americans – regardless of race, income, or zip code – have fair access to the ballot box.

This is about nothing less than upholding the very principles of democracy. At a time when President Trump holds himself out as a King, we must remind the ruling oligarchy that America is not a monarchy: It is a democracy. But democracy only survives when the right to vote is protected.

Tell Congress: Pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The future of our democracy depends on it.

Thank you for standing up for “the most powerful tool we have in our democratic society”: the right to vote.

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action