Voting Rights Act of 1965 is almost 50, Section 5 still needed

On August 6, 1965 President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act. Although the Fifteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution granted people of color the right to vote, we were not protected from the unjust practices to drive people away from the polls. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was and still remains a historical milestone of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. For the first time, legislation was enacted to ensure all African-Americans and other minorities could participate in the voting process. 

Now, forty-nine years later, our right to vote is under attack. In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down a very important section of the Voting Rights Act. Section Four created the formula that identified specific areas that exhibited outright discrimination at the polls. For these areas, the law mandated they go through a “preclearance” (Section Five) before they were able to amend different voting laws. Sadly, in the Supreme Court Case Shelby v. Holder, the court held that the formula was outdated and struck down as unconstitutional.

This hit to the Voting Rights Act has put the minority vote at stake, especially African Americans. The fight was long and hard but it is not yet over. There have been years of strategic planning to take back the black vote. On this day, we must remember that complacency will only lead to defeat. And defeated we will not be! While this is a time to celebrate a victory of gaining our right to vote free of poll taxes, literacy tests and threat of violence, it must not overshadow the uphill battle to stop voter suppression in our communities.