Received this e-mail today from Rep. Donna Edwards’ (D. MD) U.S. Senate campaign:
Rep. Donna Edwards (D. MD)My grandmother, born at the turn of the 20th Century, waited a lifetime for the right to vote without poll taxes, literacy tests and other barriers. And it wasn’t until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that she was finally able to fully exercise her fundamental right.
But after the Supreme Court struck down key parts of the Voting Rights Act (VRA), we are seeing the same systematic attempts to deny people of color, senior citizens, immigrants, and working people access to the ballot box that matches the barriers my grandmother faced.
Harsh voter ID laws, registration restrictions, limiting early vote windows -- enough is enough. If we don’t act, we risk another generation of Americans waiting a lifetime for their voting rights.
Americans fought, bled, and died for the right to vote -- and we can’t allow the Supreme Court to turn back the clock. Join me and tell Congress to restore the VRA.
In 2013, I stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington and talked about the leaders on whose shoulders we stand. Leaders like Fannie Lou Hamer, Dorothy Height, and Vivian Malone who led in that struggle and built the civil rights movement.
This is the same movement we continue today. It has different names and different leaders, but it demands our attention and our voices all the same. If we want to fully and finally cement the vote for communities of color, we must challenge Republicans and the institutions that seek to silence our voices.
And we can’t win this battle with the activism of one person, one organization, or even one community -- we must do this together. No matter the color of your skin, your sexual orientation, your religion, or where you come from -- this is your fight.
Join me and tell Congress: Restore the Voting Rights Act. We need all voices to be heard.
Thank you for being a part of this,
Donna
