Read on Twitter
Trump’s targeted mass disinformation campaign against 3.5 million Black voters in 2016 is just the tip of the iceberg of voter suppression.
Here are 12 other ways voters are being suppressed, disenfranchised, or devalued this year:
Here are 12 other ways voters are being suppressed, disenfranchised, or devalued this year:
THREATS OF VIOLENCE: The NBSTF was an armed RNC group that intimidated voters at predominately Black and Latinx polling places in 1981. It was banned until 2017. The RNC is reviving it with 50,000 volunteers this year. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/24/in-1981-a-task-force-intimidated-voters-at-the-polls-will-republicans-revert-to-their-old-tactics
POLL TAXES: In 8 states, people with felonies have to pay fines to vote—a modern day poll tax. Voter ID laws in some states require ID to vote, which isn’t cheap. The ACLU estimates the cost of getting one to be between $75 to $175.2. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/11/us/florida-felon-voting-rights.html
LITERACY TESTS: Ballots are not always accessible for non-English speakers. Indigenous groups are particularly affected by this language injustice. We have the resources to provide language options, but we choose not to. https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/09/13/arizonas-history-suppressing-black-latino-native-american-voters/5771359002/
VOTER REGISTRATION PURGES: Black people are disproportionately removed from voter rolls. In Milwaukee—home to 2/3 of Wisconsin’s Black population—1 in 8 registered voters was at risk of being purged. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/04/voter-purges-wisconsin-republican-election/
FELONY DISENFRANCHISEMENT: In IA, KY, and VA, people w/ felonies lose their right to vote. In other states, people w/ felonies have their voting rights strictly limited. 6.1 million people cannot vote because of a felony — 1 in every 13 Black voters. https://www.vox.com/voting-rights/21440014/prisoner-felon-voting-rights-2020-election
RACIAL WAIT GAP: In 2016, residents of Black neighborhoods waited 29% longer to vote and were 74% more likely to spend more than 30 minutes at their polling place than white neighborhoods. This was without closed polling locations due to COVID-19. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/there-are-stark-racial-disparities-in-voting-times-heres-how-to-fix-them/2019/12/16/5fb4948a-1c5b-11ea-b4c1-fd0d91b60d9e_story.html
GERRYMANDERING: Republicans have led the charge to redraw districts. They can’t get away with drawing based on race, so they group on partisan lines, such as "historically Democratic voters” which translates to Black folks. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2014/05/15/americas-most-gerrymandered-congressional-districts/
CLOSED POLLING LOCATIONS: Cities are using COVID-19 as an excuse to disproportionately close polling locations in Black neighborhoods. This leads to long lines that most working people simply can’t afford to wait in. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/06/kentucky-slashes-polling-places-voting-rights-mcgrath-booker-lebron-james/
PHOTO ID LAWS: They so quickly became law that we forget—these rules NEVER existed in any state before 2006. 3.2 million Americans don’t have photo IDs. States with strict ID laws have lower Black, Latinx, Asian-American and multiracial-American turnout. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/02/15/do-voter-identification-laws-suppress-minority-voting-yes-we-did-the-research/
DISMANTLING THE USPS: The Trump administration is destroying the USPS in order to slow down the mail and cause millions of ballots to arrive late. This is a targeted attack on our election that could influence the outcome on November 3rd. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/14/upshot/is-the-mail-getting-slower-tracker.html
POLICE INTIMIDATION: Police presence at polling places is a long-documented practice of intimidation to keep residents of overpoliced communities and people who have had traumatic experiences with police from ever casting their ballot. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-police-polling-sites-experts-unlawful/story?id=72529553
COMPLEX & CONFUSING RULES: States have unnecessary rules that allow ballots to be tossed out. In a dozen states, including here in Missouri, if your mail-in ballot isn’t notarized, it’s thrown out. In PA & other states, “naked ballots” are being tossed. https://www.vox.com/21452393/naked-ballots-pennsylvania-secrecy-envelope
It isn’t as simple as “If you don’t like it, vote.” At every turn, there is a system in place to try and silence your voice.
This is what makes voting an act of resistance—so many people want to keep you from casting your ballot.
We must dismantle the system.
This is what makes voting an act of resistance—so many people want to keep you from casting your ballot.
We must dismantle the system.
