Standing Up to the Attack on Voting Rights 

June marks the 60th anniversary of Freedom Summer, a Black voter registration drive in Mississippi in 1964 that resisted extreme violence and voter suppression. The struggle that began more than 60 years ago continues today as voting rights are still under attack.

The Supreme Court, breaking with its own precedent, recently upheld South Carolina’s racially gerrymandered voting districts in the case Alabama vs. South Carolina NAACP, stripping Black voters of political representation in all but one of the state’s Congressional districts. In the last few weeks, the U.S. House of Representatives advanced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (H.R. 8281) which would require proof of citizenship status to register for federal elections and passed the Equal Representation Act (H.R. 7109) which would add a question on citizenship status to the U.S. census.

According to a study done by the Brennan Center for Justice, millions of American citizens — between five and seven percent — don’t have the most common types of documents used to prove citizenship: a passport or birth certificate. And states who passed voter ID laws were more likely to see significant racial turnout gaps on election day.

The U.S. census is used by states as the basis for all redistricting efforts, so introducing a citizenship question would create an environment of fear for immigrant and mixed status families, ultimately excluding immigrants from fair and equal representation in the U.S. government. These recent acts by Congress and the Supreme Court could make it harder for voters of color and naturalized citizens to exercise their right to vote.

Democracy is the political enactment of a spiritual idea – we are all children of God and therefore we all deserve a voice in the direction of our country. Democracy honors the sacred worth of all human beings by recognizing that we all have a spark of the divine that allows us to shape our own destiny. The right to vote is a sacred right and must be protected.

One of the best ways we can combat the concerted effort to keep certain people from exercising their right to vote is to do everything in our power to get people to the polls. Do you have extra seats in your car? Offer to drive your neighbors, friends, and family to their polling place! Extra time on election day? Accompany those who may need help navigating the long lines and crowded settings. Become a Poll Worker or Poll Chaplain to ensure the fair and accurate counting of votes. And spread the word by sending the Our Faith Our Vote civic action center to the people in your community so they can make sure they are registered to vote, can request a mail-in ballot, and know their polling place.

In the face of mounting voter suppression, during the 60^th anniversary of Freedom Summer, it is time to follow in the footsteps of those brave organizers and get people registered and ready for this year’s elections.