The enfranchisement of non-whites in America was, unsurprisingly, a long and difficult process. Many of you know that even after the vote was legally extended to African Americans, unscrupulous state officials were still able to suppress minority votes with a number of tactics. These included civics tests skewed against certain demographics, the removal of multilingual ballots and the strategic re-drawing of voting districts.
In response to these tactics, Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act was passed. This piece of legislation gives the federal government the right to pre-approve voting policy changes in certain states, allowing the fed to screen for tactics that could target the minority vote. Section 5 has since been dubbed the “hammer and heart” of federal efforts to prevent voter suppression.
On Wednesday, Shelby County, Al., asked the Supreme Court to repeal Section 5.
Now, there are arguments in favor of the repeal. However, they all hinge on the assumption that racism no longer exists. Section 5 is the bulwark that protects the voting rights of minorities from discrimination, and without it little would prevent unscrupulous voting officials from effectively disenfranchising any group they choose. Yet conservatives in Shelby seem to believe that the law is unnecessary.
So ask yourselves: Is racism over?
Let’s look to some statistics to answer this question. Today, African Americans and Hispanic Americans are three times as likely as Caucasian Americans to live in poverty. They are at higher risk to suffer from involuntary psychiatric treatment. They face higher infant mortality rates. They are disproportionately affected by economic downturns. African Americans are underrepresented in their respective state legislatures in 43 of the 50 states.
Yet many Alabamians seem to echo Justice Antonin Scalia, who believes that these signs of racial inequality are trifles compared to the nightmare of “racial entitlement.”
Consider this: Shelby County owes the construction of much its infrastructure, ranging from industrial buildings to roads, to an all-black prison labor force that operated in the area until the 1950s. Less than a lifetime ago, privileged whites in Shelby were literally enjoying the fruits of free coerced labor from black American citizens. Now some of these same individuals who benefited from de facto slavery are alive today, arguing in the face of all statistical evidence that racial harmony has been achieved and that one of the most basic protections against institutionalized discrimination should be struck down.
All Americans, including and especially Alabamians must understand this: Section 5 confers no special treatment on minority groups. It simply ensures that their basic constitutional rights are treated with respect. It is no more an “entitlement” than granting a man police protection after he has been repeatedly targeted by criminals.
The eyes of the nation are at this moment on Alabamians. Shelby County’s request to repeal Section 5 of the voting rights not only threatens racial equality, it shows an alarming lack of compassion for the hardships that many racial minorities face.
That said, Alabamians who value equality have a job to do. Use your votes, your voices and your right to assemble; show the rest of the nation that Alabama cares.
Nathan James is a sophomore majoring in public relations. His column runs weekly on Thursdays.
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