*WASHINGTON – Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Abbott v. Perez:
“The decision by five justices of the Supreme Court to silence the voices of Latino and Black voters by permitting discriminatory redistricting plans is beyond troubling. People of color deserve the right to vote in districts that are not plagued by intentional race discrimination. It is also alarming that Justice Thomas and Justice Gorsuch took the extreme position in a concurrence that the Voting Rights Act does not apply to redistricting and can never be used to stop racial gerrymanders. To add insult to injury, the Abbott decision comes on the anniversary of Shelby County v. Holder, in which five justices on the Supreme Court struck down key provisions of the Voting Rights Act. The Constitution and the Voting Rights Act are diminished by today’s decision, and we urge Congress to act to restore these protections with legislation to ensure the right to vote is not further diluted.”
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.
Here’s the story behind the Supreme Court decision via NPR:
A bitterly divided Supreme Court on Monday upheld the redrawing of congressional and state legislative maps in Texas. The decision reversed earlier court findings that intentional racial discrimination had infected the way that some statehouse and congressional districts were drawn — and came five years to the day after the high court struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.
“Our legislative maps are legal”
The Texas decision comes in a case that has lasted so long and is so complicated that even election experts find it daunting to discuss. The case has pinged and ponged between two separate three-judge federal courts and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Get the FULL story at NPR or LISTEN below:
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