Will Black Republicans Stand Up Against Voter Suppression In North Carolina?
“Black people came here in chains and have built the country and are systemically denied the right to vote. … People are spitting on black people, men and women all over the country, and that’s why it’s incumbent on us to have a very serious discussion” about this topic. Michelle D. Bernard, September 7, 2016
The US Supreme Court ruled that North Carolina’s voter I.D. law will not take effect in time for this year’s general election.
Earlier this year, a federal appeals court struck down several provisions of the discriminatory law, saying it targets African-Americans with “almost surgical precision” in an effort to suppress the Black vote.
With the 2016 presidential election just around the corner, one would think Republicans would be increasing access to the polls, instead of attempting to limit it.
North Carolina’s voter suppression law is considered to be the worst in the nation. Roland Martin, host of NewsOne Now, questioned whether Black Republicans would stand up and demand that members of their party cease and desist these attempts to keep African-Americans from voting.
Ralph Chittams, Senior Vice Chairman of the Washington, D.C. Republican Party, told Martin, “I abhor any and all attempts to suppress anybody’s right to vote for any reason whatsoever.” But he stopped short of issuing a call to action for Black Republicans.
Michelle Bernard, Political Analyst and President and CEO of the Bernard Center for Women, Politics & Public Policy, addressed why suppressing the Black vote is so heinous: “Black people came here in chains and have built the country and are systemically denied the right to vote. People are spitting on Black people, men and women all over the country, and that’s why it’s incumbent on us to have a very serious discussion about this topic.”