Voting Rights--and Wrongs

Voting Rights--and Wrongs PDF Author: Abigail M. Thernstrom
Publisher: A E I Press
ISBN: 9780844742724
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 344

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Book Description
n this provocative book, Abigail Thernstrom argues that southern resistance to black political power began a process by which the act was radically revised both for good and ill. Congress, the courts, and the Justice Department altered the statute to ensure the election of blacks and Hispanics to legislative bodies ranging from school boards and county councils to the U.S. Congress.

When Voting is Wrong

When Voting is Wrong PDF Author: J.D. Moore
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1329240928
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 72

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Book Description
This book is a wake-up call for voters. Voting becomes unpatriotic when we are simply choosing the lesser of evils instead of demanding better. Our leaders have together run up a crippling debt handing out entitlements and lower taxes at the same time. Both parties have proved they are simply irresponsible and cowardly. Both are buying our votes with our grandchildrens' money, while the middle class crumbles. We need a new party, with new leaders who have enough moral integrity, grit and vision to turn around a morally and financially bankrupt country.

Voting Rights, Voting Wrongs

Voting Rights, Voting Wrongs PDF Author: Bernard Grofman
Publisher: Century Foundation Press
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 72

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Book Description


The Hidden History of the War on Voting

The Hidden History of the War on Voting PDF Author: Thom Hartmann
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
ISBN: 1523087803
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
"Hartmann's history of voter suppression in America is necessary information given current news about voter registration purges and redistricting...a particularly timely topic for an election year, and anyone who is seriously concerned about the survival of American democracy will want to read this book and apply its lessons."—Booklist America's #1 progressive radio host looks at how elites have long tried to disenfranchise citizens—particularly people of color, women, and the poor—and shows what we can do to ensure everyone has a voice in this democracy. In today's America, only a slim majority of people register to vote, and a large percentage of registered voters don't bother to show up: Donald Trump was elected by only 26 percent of eligible voters. Unfortunately, this is not a bug in our system, it's a feature. Thom Hartmann unveils the strategies and tactics that conservative elites in this country have used, from the foundation of the Electoral College to the latest voter ID laws, to protect their interests by preventing “the wrong people”—such as the poor, women, and people of color—from voting while making it more convenient for the wealthy and white. But he also lays out a wide variety of simple, commonsense ways that we the people can fight back and reclaim our right to rule through the ballot box.

Voting Rights--and Wrongs

Voting Rights--and Wrongs PDF Author: Abigail M. Thernstrom
Publisher: A E I Press
ISBN: 9780844742694
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
In Voting Rights-and Wrongs: The Elusive Quest for Racially Fair Elections, Abigail Thernstrom explores the complex issues raised by the Voting Rights Act today. Thernstrom celebrates the landmark 1965 law that opened southern voting booths to African Americans-while challenging its evolution into a tool to create a racially fair distribution of political power. Federal law now requires states to draw majority-minority legislative districts, giving minority voters a uniquely sheltered status. Color-conscious policies were morally justified when the only alternative was the perpetuation of all-white or overwhelmingly white legislatures. Today, such race-conscious districting may create less-rather than more-integrated politics.

Voting Rights in America

Voting Rights in America PDF Author: Bridgett A. King
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1440871558
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Book Description
Through primary sources, this volume examines the history, evolution, and major contemporary controversies associated with voting rights in the United States, devoting particular attention to demographic groups including women, young people, people of color, and poor people. Voting is often described as the central pillar of American democracy. Yet at various points in the history of the United States, the franchise was kept away from people without landholdings, women, black people, and young members of the armed forces who were nonetheless deemed old enough to risk their lives in the defense of their nation. Even today, many observers contend that the right to vote is being eroded by a pernicious combination of political and social factors. This work uses primary sources, in concert with broad, context-setting historical overviews and an illuminating introduction to each document, to examine the full scope and importance of the struggle for voting rights in America. Coverage ranges from major historical landmarks such as women's suffrage, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the heavily contested Bush–Gore presidential election of 2000 to documents that examine current controversies about alleged voter suppression, claims of voter fraud, Russian interference in American elections, and the impact of Supreme Court decisions past and present on the constitutional right to vote.

The Future of the Voting Rights Act

The Future of the Voting Rights Act PDF Author: Sharyn O’Halloran
Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation
ISBN: 1610441893
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 386

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Book Description
The Voting Rights Act (VRA) stands among the great achievements of American democracy. Originally adopted in 1965, the Act extended full political citizenship to African-American voters in the United States nearly 100 years after the Fifteenth Amendment first gave them the vote. While Section 2 of the VRA is a nationwide, permanent ban on discriminatory election practices, Section 5, which is set to expire in 2007, targets only certain parts of the country, requiring that legislative bodies in these areas—mostly southern states with a history of discriminatory practices—get permission from the federal government before they can implement any change that affects voting. In The Future of the Voting Rights Act, David Epstein, Rodolfo de la Garza, Sharyn O'Halloran, and Richard Pildes bring together leading historians, political scientists, and legal scholars to assess the role Section 5 should play in America's future. The contributors offer varied perspectives on the debate. Samuel Issacharoff questions whether Section 5 remains necessary, citing the now substantial presence of blacks in legislative positions and the increasingly partisan enforcement of the law by the Department of Justice (DOJ). While David Epstein and Sharyn O'Halloran are concerned about political misuse of Section 5, they argue that it can only improve minority voting power—even with a partisan DOJ—and therefore continues to serve a valuable purpose. Other contributors argue that the achievements of Section 5 with respect to blacks should not obscure shortcomings in the protection of other groups. Laughlin McDonald argues that widespread and systematic voting discrimination against Native Americans requires that Section 5 protections be expanded to more counties in the west. Rodolfo de la Garza and Louis DeSipio point out that the growth of the Latino population in previously homogenous areas and the continued under-representation of Latinos in government call for an expanded Section 5 that accounts for changing demographics. As its expiration date approaches, it is vital to examine the role that Section 5 still plays in maintaining a healthy democracy. Combining historical perspective, legal scholarship, and the insight of the social sciences, The Future of the Voting Rights Act is a crucial read for anyone interested in one of this year's most important policy debates and in the future of civil rights in America.

Ballot Blocked

Ballot Blocked PDF Author: Jesse H. Rhodes
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 1503603539
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 323

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Book Description
Voting rights are a perennial topic in American politics. Recent elections and the Supreme Court's decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which struck down key enforcement provisions in the Voting Rights Act (VRA), have only placed further emphasis on the debate over voter disenfranchaisement. Over the past five decades, both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have consistently voted to expand the protections offered to vulnerable voters by the Voting Rights Act. And yet, the administration of the VRA has become more fragmented and judicial interpretation of its terms has become much less generous. Why have Republicans consistently adopted administrative and judicial decisions that undermine legislation they repeatedly endorse? Ballot Blocked shows how the divergent trajectories of legislation, administration, and judicial interpretation in voting rights policymaking derive largely from efforts by conservative politicians to narrow the scope of federal enforcement while at the same time preserving their public reputations as supporters of racial equality and minority voting rights. Jesse H. Rhodes argues that conservatives adopt a paradoxical strategy in which they acquiesce to expansive voting rights protections in Congress (where decisions are visible and easily traceable) while simultaneously narrowing the scope of federal enforcement via administrative and judicial maneuvers (which are less visible and harder to trace). Over time, the repeated execution of this strategy has enabled a conservative Supreme Court to exercise preponderant influence over the scope of federal enforcement.

Voting Wrongs

Voting Wrongs PDF Author: United States. Congress
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781977918819
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Book Description
Voting wrongs : oversight of the Justice Department's voting rights enforcement : hearing before the Subcommittee on the Constitution of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, second session, April 18, 2012.

The Ethics of Voting

The Ethics of Voting PDF Author: Jason Brennan
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400842093
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 229

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Book Description
Nothing is more integral to democracy than voting. Most people believe that every citizen has the civic duty or moral obligation to vote, that any sincere vote is morally acceptable, and that buying, selling, or trading votes is inherently wrong. In this provocative book, Jason Brennan challenges our fundamental assumptions about voting, revealing why it is not a duty for most citizens--in fact, he argues, many people owe it to the rest of us not to vote. Bad choices at the polls can result in unjust laws, needless wars, and calamitous economic policies. Brennan shows why voters have duties to make informed decisions in the voting booth, to base their decisions on sound evidence for what will create the best possible policies, and to promote the common good rather than their own self-interest. They must vote well--or not vote at all. Brennan explains why voting is not necessarily the best way for citizens to exercise their civic duty, and why some citizens need to stay away from the polls to protect the democratic process from their uninformed, irrational, or immoral votes. In a democracy, every citizen has the right to vote. This book reveals why sometimes it's best if they don't. In a new afterword, "How to Vote Well," Brennan provides a practical guidebook for making well-informed, well-reasoned choices at the polls.

Just how Stupid are We?

Just how Stupid are We? PDF Author: Richard Shenkman
Publisher: Basic Books (AZ)
ISBN: 0465077714
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
Takes aim at the intelligence of the American people in relation to the nation's political system, revealing how voters are misusing, abusing, and abdicating their political power and offering concrete proposals for reforming our institutions and political processes.