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VOTING RIGHTS

How Much Racism Is There Still In The South?

Alabama wants changes in Voting Rights Act rules

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by David Mark

Editor-in-Chief t

Image: AP

The days of Bull Connor fire-hosing courageous civil rights protesters are long over. But there's still a long way to go in ensuring voting rights are upheld for all across the South, says a Los Angeles Times editorial.

So the Supreme Court should keep in place the rule requiring that states with a history of denying minorities the right to vote obtain the approval of a federal court or the U.S. Justice Department before changing election procedures. This "preclearance" provision, The Times notes, has been repeatedly reauthorized by Congress - most recently in 2006, when it was extended for another 25 years by margins of 390 to 33 in the House and 98 to 0 in the Senate.

"Yet this proven protection may be on constitutional life support. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case from Alabama that challenges Section 5 and the formula by which nine states, mostly in the South, and parts of seven others (including California) are required to obtain preclearance when they redraw district lines, modify registration procedures or change any other practice that might disadvantage minority voters."

Striking down the pre-clearance provision "would be a mistake of historic proportions," says The Times editorial. "It may no longer be true that African Americans registering to vote are required to face down hostile election officials or endure literacy tests, or that city councils and legislatures in the South are all-white and determined to remain so. But subtler forms of discrimination against blacks and other minorities persist - such as gerrymandering to dilute their voting power or relocating polling stations to make them less accessible to minorities - and Congress has reasonably determined that they are more of a problem in some places than in others. The court should respect that judgment."

Via The Los Angeles Times.

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Comments (view in Forum)

  • u
    fridayjones
    !
    litdes....guess you don'r live donw here do ya! I live in SC and all the multi-racial families and couples walking around without most people batting an eye just shows it isn't as rampant as those fucked up bigoted yankees like to prate it as being!
  • u
    DrNickels
    !
    @fridayjones
    I agree. I moved to South Carolina from Ohio a while back and was floored with how well races work together here. I see plenty of Asians, blacks, Hispanics and whites working together. I don't see any racism. In fact I think I saw more racism in Ohio. It usually was black on white rather than white on another race. The south is a great place to live.
  • u
    vws
    !
    Why just the South - there is racism in all areas of the country and in all walks of life - anyone that does not accept another because of their race is a practicing racist!
  • u
    culinary
    !
    I agree 100%!! I am constantly hearing how the south is so racist but it is everywhere. As for how districts and states can cause hardship to minorities, these tactics would cause hardships to anyone who didn't have the means, not just a specific race.
  • u
    vws
    !
    @PoliticalSpice Other parts of the Country are also covered - great! If the War between the States is over - why continue to focus on the South - and parts of other States? If the law is so great it should apply to all!
  • DogLady_1
    !
    Very true. The south is far less segregated than many northern regions... I live in the South, and it is usually a snowbird or a Texan that comments about all the black people they see everywhere they go... like they are amazed! LOL! Workplaces are far more integrated too... and I don't know about other southern states, but mine loves to put on cultural fairs and events and celebrate ethnic heritages of the people who live here. So, between Christmas and July 4th, we have Tet, Chinese New Year, Mardi Gras, MLK Day and Juneteenth to look forward to... and everyone joins the festivities... well alomost everyone... we still have a few mule-headed bigots among us, but they are getting older and fewer in number each year...
  • drizzt007
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    Not sure how long ago you lived in the north or south, but as a truck driver I'm in both on a weekly basis, and to me racism seems more prevalent in the northeast.
  • Quantummist
    !
    @drizzt007 .. I was Born in Kentucky, Lived in 12 states and have traveled to all lower 48 States over my working live... I lived in Michigan on and off 5 times and moved back to Kentucky 5 years ago from Detroit and have been back and forth between Detroit, Chicago and Kentucky many time... And I can say the of all the Cities i have spent time in Detroit and Chicago are the most Racist Cities I have ever been in... Will admit that Atlanta, Ga is also extremely Racist but Detroit has them all beat by a long shot.... Even the members of the Detroit City Counsel make racist remarks on a regular basis on tape and never get rebuffed....
  • u
    BossTweed
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    @drizzt007 I agree Blacks are far more RACIST in the urban areas than in America's rural areas. Remember the Black Panther thugs intimidating the voters in Philly? Most Hispanics. are far more RACIST in the Blue States too.
  • bsking
    !
    And that is because the northern territories tend to be governed by Democrats. Democrats condone racism and have built their empire on it. that is not news to anyone.

  • View all 6 replies >

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  •
    drpeeper
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    @Jet_Silverman Being a man of color, THAT would never upset me. I go by MLK "Content of character not color of skin". And what does that have to do with this topic anyway? Nothing, unless you were playing the race card.

  • View all 29 replies >

  • o
    NTBFW
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    Not anymore than the north east. I have heard more overt racism in the north than I ever heard in the south. You are only parroting an old worn out stereotype. There is racism there. But not any more than anywhere else.
  • o
    g4me
    !
    @NTBFW I am not parroting anything. I'm old, I've lived in a lot of places, not to mention other countries, and I have observed a lot with these eyes. I hate it when people make observations about other people that they couldnt POSSIBLY know about. Makes those folks look patronizing.

  • View all 7 replies >

  • AtheistStand
    !
    Yes it pretty bad here in KY. Lots of people I talk to voted against Obama strictly because he was 1/2 Black......But when I travel to the north I get a mild form of racism also from all different colors of people....I get the ole "hey you wear shoes?", "Hey you got all your teeth?", "Hey you married to your cousin?" "Hey do you live in a trailer?" So I get the "redneck" treatment....and I am assumed uneducated and dumb.

    I dont feel that the redneck treatment is as deep seeded of hate filled as the souths treatment/thoughts of blacks though....
  • Food4thoughts
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    I believe you're confusing racism for regional discrimination...and tit for tat I can't tell you how many times I've been called a "Yankee"
  • wonka45ACP
    !
    I also think you are confusing racism with just plain ignorance, or sarcasm most of the
    younger generation talk to each other like this, but we can only blame ourselves.
  • u
    culinary
    !
    I also live in kentucky and in my neighborhood alone in our small town, we have five mixed race families. I don't think its any worse here than anywhere else.
  • Keyjo
    !
    I don't think it's just racism. It's also party affiliation. Time after time, we have witnessed Republican legislatures redistricting in order to stack the deck in their favor.
    Recently, even cheating has not helped them much.
  • u
    mtkopf
    !
    Dems do the same. One only has to look at the shape of Illinois 2nd Congressional district, which is voting today to replace Jackson Jr. The district was redrawn to look like Idaho (who da ho? Sorry, couldn't resist).
    So one cannot claim it is just GOP legislatures that use gerrymandering.
  • Keyjo
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    @mtkopf
    You are correct. But recently it seems Repubs are worse. They are in a panic as they continue to lose support.
  • u
    mtkopf
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    @Keyjo I think those who live in states with a dem controlled legislature would disagree with you.

    Personally, I vote for a person and issues versus one party over the other so I don't have allegiance to ANY particular party. If you take a look at a historically dem state, one could find plenty of examples of blatant gerrymandering.

    Here is another example from Illinois: Joel Walsh vs. Tammy Duckworth. Walsh's district WAS the north suburbs, where the big money is traditionally located. His district was redrawn to extend further west, to include more middle class and ethnically diverse suburbs like Hanover Park, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg, etc. to give Democrat Tammy Duckworth a better chance. I'm glad Walsh lost( I would have voted for the devil before casting a ballot for Walsh) but his district was blatantly drawn in an effort to remove him.
    My whole point is: the dems will use the same partisan redistricting guidelines that repubs do, so to say that one party is worse than the other on gerrymandering is hypocritical.

    Now, I believe what makes the GOP look worse is the gerrymandering coupled with voter suppression attempts.

  • View all 6 replies >

  • o
    Sonny
    !
    All one has to do is look back over this past election cycle---and they would see all kinds of illegal efforts and attempts to suppress the black, minority and hispanic vote in various states all over this country...And the southern states, like Texas, for example are among some of the worst voter rights violators...Racism is not only still alive and well in the south, but throughout the rest of America as well.
  • o
    NTBFW
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    I almost didn't see the last one of your post. I would say its no more in the south than anywhere. And it goes both ways. Black racism against whites is equally prevalent.
  • o
    Sonny
    !
    @NTBFW I could probably get you some statistics on which regions of the country are worst than others...But that's not as important as the fact that we both recognize that it does indeed exist. One point of difference (it may sound like "hair-splitting" to you) but there is a legal distinction between "blacks being prejudiced against whites" and "whites being racist against blacks"...The key to the "difference" if you will, is in the abilities of one group to effect economic, financial, and societal outcomes of the other.
  • o
    Sonny
    !
    @NTBFW But I would tend to lament the fact that there is just too much of racism, prejudice, bigotry in this country altogether. There is plenty of this nonsense all over the place.
  • u
    Realthinker
    !
    The bottom line? Democrats need race to remain an issue they can use. No matter what whites and Republicans do, we will never be free of being called racists so long as the issue wins elections for Democrats. That is equally true for vote fraud. Democrats will never allow photo ID's if they can help it. Never.
  • Food4thoughts
    !
    @Realthinker
    The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior...I see you conveniently chose to not address the first part of my post lol
  • Wait-----what
    !
    A lot....just like everywhere else. It will never go away because there are those that still want to harbor hatred for someone else because of their skin color. And in turn they pass that hatred and ignorance down to their children, and so on, and so on. Isn't it amazing that you can put children of different ethnicities in a room, and they will play with each other like there is no tomorrow? They have to be taught how to hate, taught how to be ignorant. Parents that teach their children how to judge based upon skin color are doing their child a disservice.
  • u
    PCW
    !
    I live in rural N. Mississippi and I have 2 racially mixed grandchildren. Among the whites it is a non factor. Nobody cares. Among the black community there has been a great deal of racism against my daughter and her children. Their other grandparents almost never see them by their choice. Racism is alive and well among blacks and Democrats.
  • Knuckleballer
    !
    Aren't they discriminating against the states in question? We have an electoral process where people proudly admit to voting several times in a presidential election in states that aren't being "watched"

    I wonder what would happen if the six time voter were not a racial minority voting by color? Would a story about a White voter doing the same thing be so widely ignored?

    Remember, Racism isn't necessarily white against black... the sword cuts both ways.
  • jessejaymes
    !
    That's like asking if water is wet. But it's not just the south and it's not just whites. NO state should be able to gerrymander districts without outside determination that there is no racist intent. Blacks and Latinos are racist against each other and against whites. Asians tend to be racist against all races including other Asian races other than their own "nationality".(Ask a Chinese what they think of a Japanese and vice versa). Living in Los Angeles I would have to say young black males are more racist against whites than anyone. Young Latino males are more racist against Blacks than anyone. Young white males are more racist against Asians than anyone. Young Asian males are more racist against blacks than anyone.

    Old white males are more racist against blacks than anyone. Old black males are more racist against Whites than anyone. Old Latino males are more racist against blacks and old Asian males are racist against everyone. Women of all ages tend to be less racist than men but these views hold to a lesser degree. Exceptions of course exist and there tends to be more exceptions the younger the person other than the racism of young black males.

    My feeling is the rural south is the most racist white people, the big city urban blacks are the most racist of blacks, First generation American Latinos are the most racist (more than illegals) and the more successful an Asian is the more they tend to become racist.

    They not only need to keep the law they need to expand it.
  • Roco
    !
    You explained that very well. I have been trying to get many to look at racism that way. I have been called an "Uncle Tom" for not supporting the "white man is keeping us down" racism from a lot of the guys I grew up with and some of those I met in college. I dated a Chinese lady in college and she got transferred because of her parents not wanting her daughter dating a "n-word." Moving to AZ, I was told to watch out for the "Mexicans - they hate Black people." I have experienced a little of that but overall, it has been a good experience. The most racist region from my experience is the South, parts of the Northeast, MO, NE, OK and the upper west coast.(Places I have either lived in or visited). In these areas, it just like you stated above. All types of racism. I don't think this can be fixed. Gerrymandering should be illegal for all states and all political parties.
  • jessejaymes
    !
    @Roco We are a nation of tribes. That doesn't mean (at least not to me) that we can't interact within those tribes. Most of us are "racist" against what we fear. After being beaten, robbed and hospitalized by gang members in my store someone asked me if I was now afraid of young black males. I said yes I am. They said so one incident has made you racist. My answer to that (because I knew it was coming) is this. You didn't ask me if I was afraid of young black males before I got robbed, you didn't ask me if I am afraid of young white males, or young Latino males or young Asian males in gangs. Finally you assumed I got robbed by black gangsters when I didn't.

    We can all make a racist out of someone other than our own race. I find it interesting that I am white and yet when i call another white a bubba or a redneck on the internet some other alleged white person will instantly call me a racist and assume I am a minority. I find it interesting that the rap culture uses the N word constantly when I marched to get rid of that word as part of racism and hate back in the 1960's. Does that make the rap culture racist against their own race?

    My black business partner of 30 years, my best friend and Nam partner, has no use for "cultures". He doesn't care if you call him an Uncle Tom or whatever. He is about money and success and his daughters today have Harvard MBA's while mine have UCLA MBA's. His daughters make more money than my daughters. Which goes to prove the point. Once you get out of the ghetto or the barrio or the white trailer park, race matters little when you have that Harvard MBA. Education is more important than any single thing there is concerning racism.
  • Roco
    !
    @jessejaymes How hard it is to get people to understand that?!? Congrats on your kids accomplishments. I have seen way to much waste in people, time, and money with people harping on this racist bs. Yes, there will always be some degree of racism against someone for some reason. But people can't let them hold that against them. I was once told in college that I shouldn't associate with a guy down the hall who was considered to be a "redneck". We turned out to be the best of friends. We both attended each others' weddings. People should stop this fear mongering based on racism. Racism is about the one thing that always gets my goat. I can't judge someone by their skin color. It's all about their actions. I can't comprehend how many great people I would have not known if I was this idiotic.
  • u
    vols88
    !
    If federal authorities over see elections here then they should do so everywhere else. Racism is still here, yes, but we're not the only region in the country to be guilty of racism. If you single out southern states for this then you are guilty of regional prejudice. It's like saying all Muslims support Al Qaeda, which is neither true nor fair.
  • zachsquatch
    !
    Racism= When a white person discriminates. Otherwise, when someone of a different race discriminates, it's just plain expression. I substitute taught in an urban community near Atlanta and I can tell you right now that the most racist and crassy students were black. It wasn't uncommon to overhear the white teachers tell their stories about how a black student would tell off the teacher, yet never would fail to mention race in their rant. I wasn't down for talking in my classes and as soon as one opened their mouth without acknowledgement, they'd be written up and have to stay after, so I eliminated that problem in my class, but turn the tables to an incident in that school where a white student got into a confrontation w/ another student and said you "black something-something"...al l the black kids were ready to kill this kid because he's racist. There is a double standard out there that no one talks about. I know, terrible examples are used, but I don't have a ton of time.
  • Bobolinsky
    !
    Black, Brown and Obama

    "The Feb. 8 Department of Justice press release says that members of the Compton 155 gang, whose members call themselves “nigger killers”(the release spells it out N***** Killers) or “NKs,” use “violence and threats of violence in an effort to drive African-Americans out of their ‘territory’ on the west side of Compton.” Further,“[t]o instill fear in African-Americans, members of the gang tag their gang moniker and ‘NK’ throughout their ‘territory.’”

    "In the Los Angeles Times story, over the Christmas holidays a mother, three teenagers and a 10-year-old, all black, moved into a home in Compton. Soon four men in a black SUV pulled up, called a 19-year-old family friend a “nigger,” then drew a gun and beat him with metal pipes."

    http://frontpagemag.com/2013/lloyd-billingsle...
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