General Discussion

Palast is an easy target. He does the immense public service of keeping this issue alive. But never mind him.

The Impact of Voter Suppression on Communities of Color

Over the past decade, scholars have studied myriad ways in which certain state voting rules make participation disproportionately difficult for Americans of color — including strict voter ID laws, lines faced on Election Day, and other facets of our election system. This analysis catalogs some of the most prominent research findings on the negative impact of voting restrictions on voters of color.

https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/impact-voter-suppression-communities-color

Black People Are Getting Removed From Voter Rolls And More Purges Could Be On The Way

“Protecting Voter Registration: An Assessment of Voter Purge Policies in Ten States,” a new report from Dēmos, the public policy think tank with a strong commitment to racial justice, attempts to explain how this practice can “create unnecessary burdens on the right to vote.”

Arizona, California, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin were selected as the ten states used as the basis for this analysis because their policies were considered to be the most representative of the gamut of voter policies across the country. Also of note, many of their state legislatures are considering or have recently passed laws around voter purging.

During last year’s legislative session, 43 bills were introduced by state lawmakers that would “allow or require problematic voter purges, and in 2023, as of the writing of this report, states are considering at least 28 additional bills.”

https://www.essence.com/news/demos-study-voter-purges/

Block the Vote: How Politicians are Trying to Block Voters from the Ballot Box

Voting should be as easy and accessible as possible, and in many cases it is. But in recent years, more than 400 anti-voter bills have been introduced in 48 states. These bills erect unnecessary barriers for people to register to vote, vote by mail, or vote in person. The result is a severely compromised democracy that doesn’t reflect the will of the people. Our democracy works best when all eligible voters can participate and have their voices heard.

https://www.aclu.org/news/civil-liberties/block-the-vote-voter-suppression-in-2020

Disenfranchisement and Suppression of Black Voters in the United States

The disenfranchisement of Black Americans has long outlasted the end of the Civil War, with modern instances of voter suppression in the form of limitations on absentee and early voting, stricter voter ID requirements, restrictions on voter registration, and other systemic barriers that decrease the voting engagement of minority populations. Today, Black voter disenfranchisement primarily takes the form of voting restrictions for incarcerated individuals. Systemic barriers such as gerrymandering, voting regulations for imprisoned persons, voter ID laws, lack of access to polling locations, and other examples contribute to the disenfranchisement of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. This disenfranchisement has serious implications on election outcomes, representative government policy, and racial tensions. Two potential avenues may alleviate this issue: organizations to target legislative policies that uphold disenfranchisement, and supportive policy (including ranked-choice voting and expanded voting rights for racial minorities).

https://ballardbrief.byu.edu/issue-briefs/disenfranchisement-and-suppression-of-black-voters-in-the-united-states

Voter Roll Purges Underway Ahead of the Election

As we are entering the final days of a momentous presidential election campaign, hopes of a free and fair election are waning. Two of the main devices for unfairly tilting the scales in favor of Republican candidates — namely racial gerrymandering and voter suppression— are being fully operationalized. As evidenced by DOJ’s legal challenge of Virginia’s recent voter roll purges, several key states are unhesitant about suppressing votes. In an election that is going to be decided by a relative “handful” of voters, such tactics must be immediately challenged.

https://www.socialworkblog.org/advocacy/2024/10/voter-roll-purges-underway-ahead-of-the-election/

The Silent War on Black Voters: A Deep Dive into Recent Voter Purges

Welcome to the silent war—a war waged not with guns and bombs but with laws and purges. This war targets Black voters, stripping them of their voice in the democratic process. It’s not just a political issue; it’s a human rights crisis, deeply rooted in the history of anti-Black politics.

Voter purges are like a snake in the grass. They’re hard to see until they strike. These systematic efforts to remove voters from registration lists often blur the line between legal and illegal actions. Legal purges update voter rolls, removing deceased or relocated individuals. Illegal purges often target specific demographics, like Black voters, under the guise of “cleaning up” the rolls. This is a modern manifestation of America’s long history of denying racial freedom.

The silent war on Black voters is real, and it’s happening now. But knowledge is power. We’ve got to arm ourselves with information and fight back. Democracy depends on it. It’s about the future of Black communities across America, communities that have shown astonishing strength and resilience throughout history.

https://www.africanelements.org/news/the-silent-war-on-black-voters-a-deep-dive-into-recent-voter-purges/