[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13017]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 REAUTHORIZE THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT NOW

  (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I hold in my hand partly the 
continued reasoning for the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act of 
1965, and I encourage my colleagues from Georgia and Texas to recognize 
that the vestiges of discrimination still require this particular 
initiative to be authorized and do so immediately.
  This is a Supreme Court decision in the League of United Latin 
American Citizens versus the Governor of Texas. Specifically it says 
against this background, the Latinos' diminishing electoral support 
indicates their belief that the person was unresponsive to the 
particularized needs of the members of the minority group. In essence, 
the State took away the Latino's opportunity because Latinos were about 
to exercise it. This bears the mark of intentional discrimination that 
could give rise to an Equal Protection violation. The Voting Rights Act 
protects those from discrimination and protects their right to vote.
  Although this opinion gives a reckless aspect to midterm 
redistricting, which I hope we can correct legislatively, it does 
reaffirm the value, the importance and the sanctity of the Voting 
Rights Act in encouraging and protecting all Americans' rights to vote.
  I ask my colleagues to read this opinion for a better understanding 
of why the Voting Rights Act is an effective civil rights initiative 
that should be reauthorized.

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