Civil and Human Rights Coalition Condemns Supreme Court Decision to Shelby County v. Holder to Undermine Voter Protections against Racial Discrimination

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WASHINGTON, DC – Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Shelby County v. Holder invalidating the coverage formula of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA):

“Today’s decision is a major setback to our democracy and will have a real and detrimental impact on the voting rights of Americans. No one should be fooled by the naïve fantasy that voting discrimination no longer exists.

Section 5 is a vital tool to protect voters from losing their right to vote simply because of their race, and in 2006, on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis, Congress determined where that protection was still needed based on historical and ongoing discrimination. In today’s decision, a majority of the Court overruled the well-researched and well-considered judgment of Congress about where these protections were still needed.

Yet, as the Court acknowledged, voting discrimination still exists.  The Court invited Congress to draft another coverage formula. We urge Congress to act responsibly, with urgency, and on a bipartisan basis to revise the coverage formula to protect voting rights for minorities.

Discrimination at the ballot box is intolerable, and we must ensure that minorities don’t have their votes purged, packed, gerrymandered, and redistricted away.”

Wade Henderson is president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.