Protecting Everyone’s Freedom to Vote

For democracy to work for all of us, it must include us all.

In 2013, the US Supreme Court gutted the heart of the Voting Rights Act in Shelby County v. Holder. Politicians immediately took advantage to use anti-voter bills and racist conspiracy theories to increase their power at the expense of our communities.

As a result, voters—especially Black, Latino, Asian American, and Native American voters—face many more barriers than White voters to making their voices heard in local, state, and federal elections.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is often called the “crown jewel” of the civil rights movement’s success. It encompassed essential protections to ensure we are able to make decisions about the future of our communities.

On June 25, 2013, the US Supreme Court ruled in Shelby County v. Holder that jurisdictions with a history of racial discrimination in voting were no longer required to submit voting changes for advance review (“preclearance”) by the federal government or a court—essentially gutting the power of the Voting Rights Act to protect against voting discrimination before it happened.

The Shelby County decision unleashed a torrent of voter restrictions, tactics, and schemes that have continued to this day in their intensity. These have targeted people of color and low-income people by design and paved the path for restricting other rights and freedoms, like the case of Dobbs v. Jackson.

And Still I Vote is a national call to action to take back the power of the vote. In every corner of our country, policymakers have put up discriminatory barriers to the ballot that shut out people of color. From closing polling places in Black communities to wrongfully erasing voters from the rolls, many state representatives are taking away our right to vote and rigging the system for their own benefit.

Inspired by the late Maya Angelou’s acclaimed poem “And Still I Rise,” And Still I Vote is a national campaign that will spotlight tactics some government officials use to erect barriers to the voting booth.

The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would strengthen the freedom to vote for Americans across race and region by making sure that attempts to create barriers to the ballot box that discriminate based on color, background, or zip code get federal review. The bill would restore the essential portion of the Voting Rights Act that blocks discriminatory voting policies before they go into effect, putting a transparent process in place for protecting everyone’s freedom to vote.

Learn more at andstillivote.org.