NATIONAL COMMISSION ON VOTING RIGHTS ACT LAUNCHES HEARINGS EXAMINING DISCRIMINATION IN VOTING

Panel to Dispel Myths, Document Stories and Write comprehensive Report

WASHINGTON – On behalf of the civil rights community, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has launched the National Commission on the Voting Rights Act with a series of regional hearings across the country soliciting testimony from attorneys, experts, advocates and first-hand experiences of voters to document the record of discrimination in voting since 1982, the last time the Voting Rights Act was reauthorized. The National Commission is writing a report that will be available to stakeholders during the upcoming reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act.

A day-long hearing in New York City on June 14 is expected to probe issues as diverse as language rights for Asian American immigrants to the role of the Department of Justice in protecting minority voters. Open to the public, the hearing follows sessions in Montgomery , Alabama and at Arizona State University .

Debunking myths and confronting urban legends, the Commission will gather expert and personal testimony for a comprehensive report detailing discrimination in voting since the last VRA reauthorization in 1982. The non-partisan Commission is composed of eight leading academics, policy officials and civil rights advocates. Former Senator Charles M. Mathias, Jr. (R-MD) is Honorary Chair of the Commission. The Chair of the Commission is Bill Lann Lee, the former assistant attorney general for civil rights. The other Commissioners are former Congress member John Buchanan (R-AL); labor and women's rights activist Dolores Huerta; U.S. Civil Rights Commissioner and Indian affairs advocate Elsie Meeks; Harvard professor and noted civil rights lawyer Charles Ogletree; and former lieutenant Governor of Colorado , Joe Rogers.

“The panel is providing a tremendous public service. But we are all stakeholders in this process” notes Lawyers' Committee Executive Director Barbara Arnwine. “Our goal is to build a record that is enriched by the knowledge-base of a far-flung array of people across the country. The collective voices will ultimately provide a wealth of content to assure results from which we can all share and benefit.”

Charged with taking a comprehensive look at discrimination in voting since 1982, the Commission's report will serve as a resource for the public, policymakers and advocates.

The Voting Rights Act is the most important safeguard for inclusion of minority voters in the political process. As a dispassionate fact finder, the Commission aims to provide a robust source of data for the public record about VRA enforcement, violations and practical challenges. Lawmakers should draw on evidence of discrimination to inform reauthorization of the three key sections that will expire in 2007.

These include:

Section 5: Specially covered jurisdictions must submit any voting change for review by the Department of Justice or the federal district court to ensure that it does not discriminate against minority voters.
Sections 6-9: The federal government has the authority to send federal election examiners and observers to jurisdictions covered by Section 5.
Section 203: Covered jurisdictions must provide bilingual language assistance to voters in communities with high concentrations of non- English speakers.

“The VRA is the red light that stops those who seek to intimidate and disenfranchise voters,” Arnwine warns. “The Commission's report will show how this has worked by including the enforcement record since 1982”.

Enacted to protect African American voters as an outgrowth of the civil rights movement, the VRA has become the most potent defender of all minority voters, and voters who need language assistance. The VRA, particularly the expiring provisions, has been essential to minority political participation in light of demographic shifts and the expansion of Latino and Asian communities. Even the first Americans, indigenous and American Indian populations, have gained greater protections under the VRA.

“New citizens reaching for the promises of a democratic America rely on the Voting Rights Act to ensure they are not marginalized or inhibited by barriers,” states Commission Chair Bill Lann Lee, the first Chinese American to hold a sub-cabinet position.

The Commission will hold regional meetings throughout the year in Minneapolis (July 22), Orlando (August 4), Los Angeles (September), Rapid City , SD (September), Washington , DC (October), and Jackson , MS (October 29). Guest commissioners will be featured at each hearing.

A draft of the Commission's report will be written by noted voting rights expert and author Dr. Chandler Davidson, professor emeritus of Sociology at Rice University . Contributors will include the National Commissioners, Lawyers' Committee staff and national co-sponsors of the Commission. The report is scheduled for release later this year . ###

The National Commission on the Voting Rights Act is a non-partisan panel convened by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Co-sponsors of the Commission are from leading civil rights organizations including: Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Demos, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, NAACP National Voter Fund, National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, National Congress of American Indians, People for the American Way Foundation, Project Vote, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

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