Voter Suppression in America (Part 2)

Many types of voter suppression tactics were implemented in the U.S. during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries as outlined in my column in last week's Monroe Dispatch. Despite the progression of time and significant advancements provided by Black citizens of our country, the nation still struggles with providing equitable political gain and true rights to all of its Brown and Black citizens. Can you imagine waking up on Tuesday, November 3, excited to exercise your right to vote after ten years of not participating, only to get to your polling place and find out your name has been purged from the registered voters' list? Or imagine arriving at your polling place in a 1st world America to find armed guards there called to "protect" but instead create fear and hostility. Just a few days ago, the National Public Radio (NPR) broadcasting channel host Michel Martin spoke with Kristen Clarke, an attorney and executive director of the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a group formed at the request of President Kennedy, outlining just that. Their conversation highlighted that in 2020 voter suppression consists of expelling some voters from voter rolls (for reasons often unexplained), unclear changes and instructions for individuals who try to register to vote, moving voting sites to hostile locations, and shutting down polling sites. Dozens of other news reports have been written about the modern-day tactics that are being used to choke voters of their right to vote and cause confusion about how things will be done for this year's presidential election.

What's the correlation between the voter suppression of 2020 and 1964? The reports contend that tactics then and now are in place to disenfranchise and burden voters of color, Native Americans, students, and others. One of the most significant barriers and controversies of this year's election is the reliability and availability of absentee voting amid global pandemic concerns. Some litigators working to fight states regarding their absentee ballot restrictions assert that voters should not have to compromise their health for the sake of casting their vote in-person. There is also a national uneasiness around the United States Postal Service (USPS) and its capacity to receive and process ballots as it has done seamlessly in the past. Since the appointment of a new Grand Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, former Republican party fundraiser, US postal machinery, processes, and service has mysteriously gone awry. These extreme lengths to continue voter suppression only make me question our government. Why aren't our current leaders doing the right thing to ensure all Americans are afforded ample opportunities to vote. What is so greatly at stake that we are being confused and suppressed this way?