Your weekly source for analysis and insight from experts at the Brennan Center for Justice

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The Briefing

The idea that there’s something wrong with voting by mail in the middle of a pandemic is not a “charge” — it’s a lie. We should never lose sight of how extraordinary it is to have a political leader, let alone a president, work so hard to undermine faith in American democracy in the middle of a crisis.

On Sunday, I was on NBC’s Meet the Press

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with Janai Nelson of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, who explained why this year voting by mail is particularly important for Black and brown voters. With the coronavirus disproportionately wreaking havoc on these communities, absentee ballots will provide the safest way to cast a ballot. This makes the president’s lies a naked bid to suppress the vote.

So in the middle of a crisis, with an election season full of disinformation attempts to suppress the vote, what can we do? To start, it’s important that each of us votes as early as possible based on our local options. Whether it’s by mail, a secure drop box, or in-person, voting early is the best way to guarantee your vote counts.

Unfortunately, all these options aren’t available

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to every voter. We don’t have one national election, or even 50 state elections, but thousands of elections run by county election officials. There would be great benefit, and far less confusion, if we had some national standards and expectations: voting by mail for everybody who wants to do so, early voting opportunities, and safe, in-person voting locations everywhere. We need to upgrade, modernize, and fix our ramshackle system of running things.

But in the meantime, we need to concentrate our efforts where they count. We’ve created toolkits for each state

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with the information activists need to conduct targeted advocacy to make the election safe and accessible to all. The toolkits lay out exactly where each state stands and falls short on the most critical aspects of our election infrastructure.

The private sector can also help

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Congressional support is still badly needed before November, but at this point, all of civil society must step up. With their resources and influence, businesses can help protect the election by recruiting poll workers, giving employees time to vote, providing financial aid to election administrations, and, as the NBA has done, providing large spaces such as arenas so people can vote safely in person.

This fight won’t end on Election Day. We can count on the lies, disinformation, and the president’s attempts to sow division continuing beyond November 3. As I’ve written before, we probably won’t know the winner on Election Night like we’re used to. To be clear: this isn’t a problem. It’s not a sign of misconduct or chaos. It just means people are carefully counting the votes and protecting the integrity of our election system. Anyone who says otherwise is playing a dangerous game with our democracy.

Constitution

Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in Law Enforcement

In 2017, the FBI reported that white supremacists posed a “persistent threat of lethal violence” that has produced more fatalities than any other category of domestic terrorists since 2000. Two years earlier, the FBI also warned that white supremacist and anti-government militia groups often have “active links” to law enforcement officials. Though this problem is not new, police affiliation with white supremacists and far-right militias has become an urgent problem in need of federal attention as the nation continues to reckon with systemic racism and police brutality.

“The harms that armed law enforcement officers affiliated with violent white supremacist and anti-government militia groups can inflict on American society could hardly be overstated,” writes Michael German, a former FBI agent who infiltrated white supremacist organizations, in a timely new report. “Despite the FBI’s acknowledgement of the links between law enforcement and these suspected terrorist groups, the Justice Department has no national strategy designed to identify white supremacist police officers or to protect the safety and civil rights of the communities they patrol.” // Read More

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New York’s Contact Tracing Privacy Bill: A Promising Model

Successful contact tracing amid the Covid-19 pandemic depends on public trust and participation. As states continue to develop contact tracing programs, it’s vital that they institute adequate privacy protections for the data collected, especially given the insufficiency of legal safeguards at the federal level. In July, the New York State Legislature passed a contact tracing privacy bill that limits information sharing between public health agencies and police and immigration enforcement. New York’s bill is an important foundation for future legislation, writes Laura Hecht-Felella. // Read More

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Democracy

We’re Suing to Stop the Trump Administration from Rushing the Census

The Brennan Center and allies have sued to stop the Trump administration’s sudden decision to cut crucial 2020 Census operations short. Over Labor Day weekend, a federal judge ordered a temporary halt to the rushed plans until a hearing in the case next Thursday. “The rushed timeline shortens operations the Census Bureau has designed specifically to count people the bureau has historically missed, including people of color,” writes Kelly Percival. “The new plan essentially guarantees that the 2020 Census will not fully count those populations, and it will therefore perpetuate systemic racism in our democracy for the next 10 years.” // Read More

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Voters vs. Disinformation

Bad actors — foreign and domestic — are trying to suppress the vote by spreading false information online. These tactics frequently target historically disenfranchised voters, and the pandemic has only intensified the threat of disinformation. But voters can defend themselves. Tim Lau explains how members of the general public can help identify and stop the spread of digital disinformation in the run-up to November. // Read More

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Gerrymandering Hinders Racial Justice in Wisconsin

In response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers called the state legislature into a special session to take up a package of police reform bills. But Republicans, with a near supermajority in both chambers thanks to wildly gerrymandered maps, have shown little urgency in advancing even moderate police accountability measures. The failure of the legislature to respond to issues such as policing demonstrates the real consequences of legislative maps that prioritize the interests of partisan politicians over those of the people, writes Julia Kirschenbaum. // Read More

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Justice

The Violence Against People Behind Bars that We Don’t See

A recent report by the Justice Department and Alabama’s three U.S. attorneys identified violations of excessive force rules in 12 of the 13 Alabama prisons reviewed. Correctional officers, the report said, often relied on force “while making no effort to de-escalate tense situations.” There are ways to reduce abuse, like installing more cameras and implementing meaningful oversight of prisons, but we also need to prioritize significantly reducing mass incarceration, writes Lauren-Brooke Eisen. // TIME

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Protecting the Fundamental Right to Mail in Prison

The crisis at the U.S. Postal Service can prove to be especially devastating for people in prison who depend on mail to contact their loved ones and legal counsel. The right to mail is so fundamental for the incarcerated that it is included in the United Nations’ minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners. Congress, write Alia Nahra and Leily Arzy, must monitor the USPS to ensure this vital lifeline continues for those behind bars during this unprecedented time. // Read More

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Coming Up

VIRTUAL EVENT: Getting ‘Election Night’ Right

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Thursday, September 10 | 12:00 p.m.–1:00 p.m. EDT

Join Stephen Engelberg (ProPublica editor in chief), Amy Walter (national editor of The Cook Political Report and host of The Takeaway: Politics with Amy Walter), Abby Phillip (CNN political correspondent), and Brennan Center President Michael Waldman for a conversation about the journalistic missteps of the last presidential cycle and how to ensure fair, accurate, and comprehensive reporting. What lessons has the press learned coming out of 2016? And why is it so crucial that journalists get things right this time around?

This event is produced in partnership with ProPublica, New York University’s John Brademas Center, and NYU Votes. RSVP Today

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VIRTUAL EVENT: Incarceration and Inequality

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Wednesday, September 16 | 12:00 p.m.–1:00 p.m. EDT

The United States’ 400-year history of racial injustice continues to produce profound economic inequalities today. Join Wes Moore (New York Times bestselling author and CEO of Robin Hood) and experts from the Brennan Center’s Justice Program for a discussion on why ending mass incarceration is both a moral and economic imperative and a vital step toward closing the racial wealth gap.

This event is produced in partnership with Robin Hood. RSVP Today

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News

Michael German on the infiltration of white supremacist groups in law enforcement // MSNBC

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Hannah Klain on safe in-person voting // CNN

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Michael Li on the impact of census delays on redistricting // CBS News

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Sean Morales-Doyle on voting rights restoration in Florida // Pew Trusts

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Lawrence Norden on options for safely requesting a ballot in Ohio // Columbus Dispatch

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Faiza Patel on Trump’s crackdown on Black Lives Matter protests // Daily Beast

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Myrna Pérez on the impact of evictions on voting access // The Appeal

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Ian Vandewalker on disinformation and voting // NBC News

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Michael Waldman on democracy under threat in the United States // The Guardian

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and The Guardian Podcast

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Wendy Weiser on Massachusetts’ smooth primary // New York Times

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Wendy Weiser and Jennifer Weiss-Wolf on how the private sector can help save the election // Newsweek

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Thomas Wolf on a federal court’s temporary restraining order on the rushed census timeline // Washington Post

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Have an issue you'd like us to cover? Feedback on this newsletter? Email us at [email protected]

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The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that works to reform, revitalize – and when necessary defend – our country’s systems of democracy and justice.

Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law

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