ACLU Urges Quick Passage of Bipartisan Voting Rights Act Reauthorization
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: media@dcaclu.org
WASHINGTON – Two days after Congressional leaders unveiled H.R. 9/S.2703, the bipartisan, bicameral “Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006,” the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing to examine the legislation introduced to reauthorize the expiring of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The American Civil Liberties Union applauded that legislation and urged Congress to enact the proposal swiftly. Several sections of that key civil rights law will expire in 2007 unless Congress acts to renew them.
The following can be attributed to Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office:
“There is a continuing need for the Voting Rights Act, and this bill answers that call. Sadly, some state and local governments continue to enact procedures and changes that seek to prevent minorities from being full participants in the political process. In the past 14 years, the ACLU alone has brought 293 legal challenges in 31 states to protect the right to vote and challenge discrimination in voting. Others, including the Justice Department, have also brought on hundreds of similar lawsuits. The evidence is clear – Congress needs to renew the Voting Rights Act.
“Rarely has any Congressional legislation enjoyed so much bipartisan and bicameral support. It is a testament to the commitment of lawmakers to see this bill passed. The right to vote is fundamental to our democracy, and Congress must do everything in its power to ensure that every American can participate fully in the political process.”
To read more about the ACLU’s campaign to renew the Voting Rights Act, go to:
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