National and State NAACP Leaders Speak Out on Oppressive North Carolina Agenda
Recent actions and legislation introduced in the North Carolina legislature has prompted strong reactions from the leaders of several national and state civil rights groups. The policies and bills put forward by the newly empowered Republican majorities in Raleigh increase voter restrictions and target healthcare expansion, unemployment benefits, education reform, and tax credits for the poor.
Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP, was joined by Rabbi David Saperstein, NAACP board member and chair of the National Committee on Religious Affairs, and by Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, President of the NAACP North Carolina State Conference, in issuing statements of condemnation of the moves by the legislature.
“Extremist lawmakers in North Carolina are trying to use voter suppression to advance their retrogressive political agenda,” said Jealous. “We support the North Carolina NAACP, the People’s Coalition, and their allies in the clergy as they encourage lawmakers to promote the welfare of all citizens. We cannot allow our democracy to be compromised by politicians who would rather stop some voters from voting than do the hard work of convincing those voters to vote for them.”
Saperstein noted, “According to the North Carolina State Constitution, all political power is vested in the people and derives from their will. Right now that vision is under attack on multiple fronts. Lawmakers are attempting to impose their agenda by suppressing the vote in a way that will severely hurt the most vulnerable people in the state. Their plan will only further marginalize communities that already struggle with the legacy of poverty and segregation. Those whose abiding commitment to equal rights derives from their core religious beliefs cannot and will not stand idly by.”
“Our legislature is launching an attack on education, voting rights, the poor, and the sick,” said Dr. Barber, state NAACP president. “This attack comes from the policies of the Old South which requires a clear moral response, in the deepest tradition of the nonviolent movement to inspire public outcry and protest. When legislatures work to limit the voices in one group for political gain it is bad for our communities, North Carolina, and our country. It is a moral imperative that our elected officials act in the best interest of all constituencies. We encourage leaders in the faith community to engage their members and implore those officials to act as one for the sake of all. Just one person without a voice or influence is a detriment to his or her state.”
While no specific actions have been planned in opposition to the legislature’s actions, it is possible that some aspects of the voter ID laws, as well as other laws that democracy activists say disempower the poor and people of color, may be challenged in court, whether by the NAACP or voting rights groups such as Democracy NC. However, all citizens are urged to contact their legislators to express their opinions.
