Tag Archives: The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

theGrio’s 100: OUR COMMON GROUND Voice, Barbara Arnwine

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theGrio’s 100: Barbara Arnwine, keeping civil rights front and center

Laywers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Executive Director Barbara Arnwine (2nd R) speaks during a news conference to voice opposition to state photo identification voter laws with the Rev. Jesse Jackson (C) and members of Congress at the U.S. Capitol July 13, 2011 in Washington, DC. In what the the committee calls 'vote supression legislation,' eight states require photo identification for people to vote and 22 others are considering similar legislation. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)Laywers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Executive Director Barbara Arnwine (2nd R) speaks during a news conference to voice opposition to state photo identification voter laws with the Rev. Jesse Jackson (C) and members of Congress at the U.S. Capitol July 13, 2011 in Washington, DC. In what the the committee calls ‘vote supression legislation,’ eight states require photo identification for people to vote and 22 others are considering similar legislation. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Arnwine is president and executive director of theLawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law,which works on issues like racial profiling and voter protection.

Why is she on theGrio’s 100? 

Arnwine and her group were instrumental in battling controversial voting laws, such as ones requiring photo identification to vote, that were passed by Republican legislatures in 2011 and 2012. The committee joined lawsuits against many of the laws, helping lead to many of them being struck down by courts. The group also created a “Map of Shame” depicting which states had the most controversial voting laws and a hotline for people to report voting or registration problems in the months before Election Day.

“Voter suppression legislation that has been debated and passed across the nation since the 2010 mid-terms threatens to heighten voter confusion this November,” Arnwine said in the midst of the campaign.

The effort by Arnwine and others was successful, as Obama campaign aides said the voter laws had little impact on the 2012 election results.

What ‘s next for Arnwine? 

The battle over voter laws is likely to continue. While courts put aside many of the laws in 2012, Republican-led legislatures and governors are likely to propose them again in the future. And the 2014 and 2016 campaigns are not far away.

Arwine

LISTEN TO OUR COMMON GROUND with Barbara Arnwine HERE

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On Voter Suppression: Supreme Court rejects 30 year GOP effort at Voter Intimidation

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On Voter Suppression: Supreme Court rejects 30 year GOP effort at Voter Intimidation

January 14, 2013

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The Republican effort to end a 30 year old court order which attempts to prevent intimidation of minority voters  was unsuccessful. The Supreme Court has rejected their appeal without comment from the Justices.

Image: Think Progress

Image: Think Progress

 

The AP reports, “The order stems from a lawsuit filed by Democrats in New Jersey in 1981 that objected to a “ballot security” program the RNC ran in minority neighborhoods. Republicans said the order hampers efforts to combat voter fraud, but U.S. District Judge Dickinson Debevoise said voter intimidation remains a threat and preventing it outweighs the potential danger of fraud. The court action is unrelated to legal challenges to Republican-inspired voter identification laws in the 2012 campaign.”

This is a big win against voter suppression. The ballot security program posted armed officers in the task force, from the ranks of off-duty county deputy sheriffs and local police, placing them at the polls with foreboding signs, who prominently displayed revolvers, two-way radios, and BSTF armbands. BSTF patrols challenged and questioned voters at the polls.

This sounds similar to True the Vote, sans the armbands. With partisan efforts to secure the polls and question mostly minority voters while claiming it’s only an effort to combat voter fraud, seems disingenuous — especially when True the Vote is a Tea Party concept which only identifies Democrats in voter fraud.

In short: GOP, you’re not the police of me!

Thanks to Barbara Arnwine, National Director, The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law for passing this piece over to us.  Barbara is an OUR COMMON GROUND Voice, along with other members of the LCCRUL staff.

Arwine