On March 19, 2015 ACS hosted the Symposium on Voting Rights in the States. Experts discussed the new state of voting rights in a day long symposium in Atlanta, Georgia. The first panel of the day considered how litigators and voting rights advocates could use state constitutions to protect the right to vote.
The panel featured:
- Ari Berman, Contributing Writer, The Nation
- Joshua Douglas, Robert G. Lawson & William H. Fortune Associate Professor of Law, University of Kentucky College of Law
- Anita Earls, Executive Director, Southern Coalition for Social Justice
- Dale Ho, Director, ACLU Voting Rights Project
- Franita Tolson, Betty T. Ferguson Professor of Voting Rights, Florida State University College of Law
On Monday, November 10, 2014, ACS hosted a briefing on Alabama Legislative Black Caucus v. Alabama and Alabama Democratic Conference v. Alabama, two cases that challenge Alabama’s legislative redistricting plans as unconstitutional racial gerrymanders. A panel of experts explored petitioners’ claim that the state has unconstitutionally classified black voters in violation of the Equal Protection Clause and the state’s response that its use of race in the redistricting process was necessary to comply with the Voting Rights Act. The cases will be argued together before the Supreme Court on November 12.
Introduction:
Katie O’Connor, Director of Policy Development and Programming, American Constitution Society for Law & Policy
Panelists:
- Moderator, Julie A. Fernandes, Senior Policy Analyst, Open Society Foundations
- Kareem U. Crayton, Associate Professor of Law at the University of North Carolina School of Law
- John M. Gore, Associate, Jones Day
- Jon M. Greenbaum, Chief Counsel and Senior Deputy Director, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
- Wendy R. Weiser, Director, Democracy Program, Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law
August 6th marked the 45th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, a statute widely viewed as the crown jewel of the civil rights movement because of its transformative impact on minorities in the United States. While significant progress has been made, barriers to the ballot box persist. Against a backdrop of ongoing legal challenges to key provisions of the Voting Rights Act, a new round of redistricting, and a looming 2010 midterm election, ACS sponsored a voting rights symposium on Tuesday, September 28th. Above is video for the lunchtime panel discussion entitled "The Road to Democracy - A Conversation with the Honorable John Lewis and Pulitzer Prize Winner Taylor Branch." August 6th marked the 45th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, a statute widely viewed as the crown jewel of the civil rights movement because of its transformative impact on minorities in the United States. While significant progress has been made, barriers to the ballot box persist. Against a backdrop of ongoing legal challenges to key provisions of the Voting Rights Act, a new round of redistricting, and a looming 2010 midterm election, ACS sponsored a voting rights symposium on Tuesday, September 28th. Above is video for the lunchtime panel discussion entitled "The Road to Democracy - A Conversation with the Honorable John Lewis and Pulitzer Prize Winner Taylor Branch."
