LYNN'S LIST

LYNN’S LIST FOR MAY 10, 2021

We are not giving up on Fair and Representative Elections in our state. Join us on Thursday, May 13 at Rosa Parks Square from 4:30 to 6:30 for a signing event.  We will be urging business leaders to deny donations to any Georgia General Assembly Legislator or PAC who voted in favor of SB202. Money talks! As always, we supply the scripts and stamps but seating is limited so bring your own chair. If you don’t feel comfortable being in a crowd, feel free to take the supplies with you.

Fair and Representative Elections

Federal

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA), signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented Black Americans from exercising their right to vote as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Blacks attempting to vote frequently were told by election officials that they had gotten the date, time or polling place wrong or that they had filled out an application incorrectly. Blacks often would be forced to take literacy tests or recite the entire Constitution. The VRA banned the use of literacy tests and required that states and counties with a history of discrimination get federal approval for new voting laws. 

In 2013, the Supreme Court gutted the law giving the green light to states to enact restrictive voter laws and enabling voter purges, and that’s exactly what they have been doing. The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act (Voting Rights Advancement Act or H.R. 4) was initially introduced in 2019 and passed the House of Representatives. The bill was reintroduced into the House in January of this year. This bill reinstates the provisions of the VRA requiring federal oversight and approval of new voting laws.

Contact Congressman Bishop or Scott with the suggested script:  My name is ---- and I am from ----.  Voter suppression laws are being introduced and have passed in several states including Georgia.  Every eligible voter should be able to vote without barriers, free from intimidation and without dirty tricks.  Become a sponsor of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and let’s get the bill passed.

There are 79 weeks until the 2022 midterm elections. As always, it’s a marathon and not a sprint.

The link to your legislators is here. 

Stay safe and follow CDC guidelines for mask wearing.