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

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The Briefing

Later this year, states will begin the process of redrawing their congressional maps. It’s the same fraught and abuse-prone process that happens every 10 years after the census count is finalized. But in a new report

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released last week, Michael Li shows that the next round of redistricting in 2021 and 2022 will be the most challenging in recent history. The stakes couldn’t be any higher either: it could decide which party controls Congress for many years to come.

When Republicans swept the midterms nationwide in 2010, they were able to lock in gerrymanders that lasted a full decade. Since then, demographics in the South and Southwest have changed rapidly, and almost all of the growth of the eligible voting population comes from communities of color. But that growth could mean very little for the political power of these communities, with partisan gerrymandering still threatening to diminish, or even erase, their political representation. Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and Texas are at particular risk of abuse.

What makes the upcoming process more challenging than the last?

As Ronald Brownstein describes in his Atlantic piece covering our new report

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, it will be the first since the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder that gutted the Voting Rights Act. Prior to the decision, the law required that states with a history of racial discrimination (including those at-risk states) receive preclearance from the Justice Department for changes in their election laws, including redrawn maps. This redistricting cycle will be the first since the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965 where communities of color will lack this protection. It’s one of many reasons why Congress must pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (VRAA) and the For the People Act.

While there may not be enough time to fully restore the preclearance process before map drawing begins, certain provisions of the VRAA would at least give judges more leeway to block racially biased maps. And in the short run, the For the People Act would have an important positive impact on the upcoming redistricting. By establishing uniform rules for drawing districts, banning partisan gerrymandering, and requiring more transparency in the map-drawing process, it could protect against the gravest threats to fair map drawing across the country.

The upcoming redistricting process isn’t all bleak. As Li writes, “expect a tale of two countries.” Newly enacted reforms in much of the country will make it harder to force through partisan gerrymanders or racially discriminatory maps. But in other states, there may be even greater room for unfair processes and results than in 2011. Unless Congress passes the For the People Act and the VRAA.

Democracy

How the Student Debt Crisis Underscores the Urgency of Campaign Finance Reform

Our campaign finance system has laid the foundation for the student debt crisis, sustaining a federal loan apparatus that serves the interests of political donors and industry insiders at the expense of student borrowers. Financial institutions and for-profit colleges wield outsized influence in our elections, and they’ve waged a decades-long effort to advance policies that bolster their own bottom lines. “In order to pave the way toward a more equitable system of higher education, Congress must take on the outsized influence of money in politics,” writes Julia Kirschenbaum. “The solutions are already available — our leaders just need to use them.” // Read More

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Justice

Covid-19 Has Made Reentry and Life After Prison Even Harder

Even in the best of times, people with a criminal record face stigma in the job and housing markets and beyond. Now, the pandemic and recession have added to these disadvantages, placing formerly imprisoned people at even greater risk of poverty and other hardships. Federal and state policies frequently fail to meet the unique needs of people whose lives have been impacted by the criminal justice system. As Congress finalizes another Covid-19 relief package, lawmakers should ensure that it doesn’t leave out people with a past criminal history, argue Terry-Ann Craigie and Ames Grawert. // Read More

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Bringing Justice to the Justice Department

Next week, Merrick Garland will face the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing to be attorney general. With the rule of law in the balance, and reactionary forces at work in Congress itself, it’s crucial that we see more than the typical and often perfunctory exchange between senators and the nominee. According to Brennan Center Fellow Andrew Cohen, Garland must be asked what he’s prepared to do to fix the Bureau of Prisons, immigration courts, the U.S. Marshals Service, and more. // Read More

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Constitution

We Don’t Need More Terrorism Laws After the Capitol Riot

Post-9/11 counterterrorism tactics led to Muslims and other minorities bearing the brunt of the domestic “war on terror.” While the idea of a new domestic terrorism law has been gaining ground as a response to the Capitol riot, Faiza Patel argues it would be unnecessary and potentially harmful. “Prosecutors already use an expansive arsenal of laws against violent far-right actors,” writes Patel. “There is simply no need to introduce a new law — especially one that would be a grave threat to minority communities and social movements.” // Newsweek

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Coming Up

VIRTUAL EVENT: After the Insurrection: How to Build a More Resilient Democracy

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Thursday, February 18 | 1:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m. ET

The attack on the Capitol, spurred by Trump’s Big Lie about the election, highlights the importance of holding those responsible to account, shoring up institutional guardrails, and taking action to revitalize democracy. Join co-chairs of the National Task Force on Rule of Law and Democracy Preet Bharara (NYU School of Law distinguished scholar in residence) and Christine Todd Whitman (former New Jersey governor), Michael Steele (former RNC chairman), Michael Waldman (Brennan Center president), and moderator Nia-Malika Henderson (CNN senior political reporter) for a conversation about the reforms needed to bolster American democracy. RSVP today

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This event is produced in partnership with The New York Public Library.

VIRTUAL EVENT: Behind the Bench: The Treatment and Selection of Law Clerks

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Thursday, March 4 & Friday, March 5 | 1:00 p.m.–2:15 p.m. ET

The judiciary isn’t only a legal institution — it’s an employer, and clerkships are often a pipeline to leadership positions in the law. Two panels will look at issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the courts. On Thursday, March 4, a panel will address sexual and other forms of harassment in the judiciary, and on Friday, March 5, a panel will discuss diversity and law clerk hiring. RSVP for Day 1

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and Day 2

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This event is co-sponsored by the National Women’s Law Center, the NYU Law Review, the American Constitution Society at NYU Law, and the Black Allied Law Students Association.

News

Michael German on law enforcement officers who attended the insurrection // Washington Post

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Michael Li on the potential for extreme partisan gerrymandering in the upcoming redistricting process // New York Times

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Sean Morales-Doyle on New York’s dysfunctional elections // Economist

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Eliza Sweren-Becker on bills in state legislatures that could make voting harder // NBC News

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Wendy Weiser on the Pennsylvania legislature’s plan to change how judges are picked // New York Times

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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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New York, NY 10271

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