“Voting Rights” bill in Congress blocks safeguards for African-American Voters

Washington, D.C. – The Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE), a policy and research center dedicated to fighting poverty and seeking solutions for black families to grow and their communities to flourish, sent a letter today to members of the U.S. House of Representatives urging them to reject H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. 

The letter, signed by CURE President Star Parker, Director of Governmental Relations Marty Dannenfelser, and Director of CURE’s Clergy Center Reverend Tim Latiff, notes the bill is an unwanted federal power grab built around divisive and erroneous claims. “It insults the ability of minorities to obtain and utilize a government-issued ID – the same ID required for nearly every aspect of daily life.”

“This so called ‘Voting Rights’ bill confirms once again that the left does not believe African-Americans can self-govern,” Star says. “To think that blacks are not smart enough to know how to get a driver’s license is absurd and demeaning.”

The legislation has been advanced on false claims of fighting against new “Jim Crow” laws in the States. “Jim Crow was a government backed system that robbed black men and women of their dignity and even their lives. Such practices have long been outlawed and voting rights have been further enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and our entire legal system. Minority voter participation is at an all-time high.”

The Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013, as well as in Brnovich v. DNC decisions in 2021, “preserved the Voting Rights Act as a tool to challenge voting laws that are intentionally discriminatory or have substantial discriminatory effects.”

Politically-motivated power grabs are evident, as the bill “empowers political appointees at the Justice Department to block commonsense voting safeguards and encourages partisan activists to file politically motivated lawsuits.”

Instead of seeking to divide Americans with irresponsible legislation bolstered by false and divisive claims, the American people deserve a government of honest work and solutions that provide equal opportunity and unites Americans around our shared values.