[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1418]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 PROTECT VOTING RIGHTS OF ALL AMERICANS

  (Ms. LEE of California asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. LEE of California. Mr. Speaker, the upcoming Shelby County, 
Alabama v. Holder Supreme Court case presents a direct threat to 
section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which is the most effective 
civil rights legislation ever enacted by Congress.
  The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed just 1 year after I 
graduated from high school. Growing up in El Paso, Texas, I vividly 
remember the days of Jim Crow, segregation, and the poll tax. Should 
the Supreme Court rule against the Justice Department and overturn this 
important legislation, minority communities will lose many of their 
voting protections.
  Later this month, I intend to join my colleagues in the Congressional 
Black Caucus to listen to the oral arguments for this case at the 
Supreme Court. Many of us were part of the 390-33 majority, along with 
98 Senators, who voted to reauthorize the Voting Right Act in 2006. We 
agreed there is still a compelling need to protect and preserve the 
voting rights of all Americans. After all, it is this right that lies 
at the very heart of our democracy that must not be eroded.

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