Bush & the Republicans Welcome Back Jim Crow?

Yet another steaming pile. . .
Tell you what, I'd better not see any damn "vote challengers" in my district on Election Day!

--ryan



Minority Vote Suppression


Sept. 4, 2004, 9:15PM



One hundred years ago, it wouldn't have been surprising for elderly black people to report that armed law enforcement officers had entered their homes and unjustly interrogated them about their votes.

It's shocking to hear that this may have happened recently in Orlando, Fla.

Attorney General John Ashcroft has been asked to investigate this issue. He should do so immediately.

The interrogations might be, as Florida claims, part of a legitimate investigation of voter fraud. But if illegal police behavior is found, the consequences must be severe.

With a close presidential election approaching, Ashcroft must send a strong message that voter intimidation is intolerable.

Unfortunately, the Florida situation is not unique. In Waller County, Texas, a district attorney recently threatened students at a historically black college with jail if they tried to exercise their legal right to vote in local elections.

In South Dakota's June presidential primary, some Native Americans were prevented from casting ballots if they didn't show identification. That is not required by state or federal law.

In Kentucky, some Republicans planned to put "vote challengers" in black districts on Election Day.

Both presidential candidates should denounce these kinds of tactics. Dishonest efforts to suppress minority votes sully democracy in America and must be stopped.

It's good that such groups as the NAACP and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights are applying pressure on law enforcement.

They should also be educating people of color about election laws so that they can spot illegal attempts to keep them from casting ballots.