posted February 26, 2004
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) today made the following statement on the Senate floor on the Voting Rights Act:
“Two weeks ago, Congressman John Lewis and I led a trip to important civil rights sites in Alabama and Tennessee. Together, we crossed Selma's Edmund Pettus Bridge, where almost 40 years ago Congressman Lewis had led peaceful marchers in the name of voting rights for all.
"I was struck by the courage and the determination of those marchers -- courage to fulfill the promises of the American Declaration for all Americans, especially the right to vote. They endured beatings without striking back. They faced hatred with love.
"Their courage brought victory and liberty not just for African Americans, but for our whole country. And we are grateful for their service.
"This year marks the 39th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that enshrined fair voting practices for all Americans. The Act reaffirmed the 15th Amendment to the Constitution and prohibits individuals and governments from interfering with the ability of African American citizens to vote.
"Dorothy Cotton, who ran the Citizenship Education project of the Southern Christian Leadership Council with Andrew Young, told me that she remembers when Voting Registration offices were open for limited hours, only when most African Americans were working.
"Another civil rights leader, Rev. Bernard Lafayette, remember[ed] that African Americans seeking to register to vote were asked to interpret obscure sections of the U.S. Constitution, or to give the number of bubbles in a bar of soap – all designed to disenfranchise African American voters.
"Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act will be up for reauthorization in 2007. President Reagan signed into law a 25 year reauthorization in 1982.
"Section 4 contains a temporary pre-clearance provision that applies to Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and parts of Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, and North Carolina. These states must submit any voting changes to the United States Department of Justice for pre-clearance. If the Department of Justice concludes that the change weakens the voting strength of minority voters, it can refuse to approve the change.
"While I recognize the bureaucratic hassle this can be for states acting in good faith, in light of our history, it’s one that I believe provides a measure of assurance that the full force of the U.S. Government stands behind voting rights.
"There is a widespread 'urban legend' that Section 4 will not be renewed in 2007, 25 years after it was reauthorized, and that African Americans will lose their right to vote. This is not true. Even if Section 4 were not reauthorized, the right to vote for all Americans would remain.
"However, you can imagine how fearful this is for many Americans who, until recently in American history, were denied the right to vote.
"That’s why Sen. McConnell and I are offering an amendment to permanently reauthorize Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act. We want to make clear to all that we will not renege on the hard-fought gains of the Civil Rights Movement.
"Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement have endorsed this amendment. Congressman John Lewis supports it. Rev. Bernard Lafayette, who joined Congressman Lewis on that fateful march in Selma said the amendment would be an “important psychological and political victory for democracy.”
"I hope and pray that the day will come when racism and discrimination are only a part of our past, and not our present. But until that time, it is important that the Justice Department retain pre-clearance authority to review changes to state voting requirements.
"I hope that all of my colleagues will join me in ensuring that the federal government will do all it can to protect the right to vote for all Americans."
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