THE MYTH OF UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE - Voting Suppression in the United States -

The United States has long championed itself as a protector of fundamental rights and one of the longest standing democracies in the world. Core to democratic identity is the right to vote. Historically, voter suppression of minority voices has been a plague that has been tempered by federal intervention. This federal protection is no longer supported by the current administration and even before Republican control of both the executive and legislative branch, the judicial branch significantly crippled federal oversight of voting laws in historically suppressive states. In 2013, with Shelby County v. Holder, key provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were deemed unconstitutional, leaving states the ability to change voting laws without federal oversight. When left to their own devices, these states have continued to systematically suppress minority votes with restrictive voting laws. The tactics used, such as strict voter identification requirements, shortened registration periods, curbing early voting and shortening times at the polls are similar to efforts that have long been used to suppress minority votes, most notably in the reconstruction period after the Civil War. Coupled with a partisan drive to gerrymander voting districts and some states banning voter registration by those with certain criminal convictions this has resulted in voter suppression that has affected the voter turnout in federal and local elections alike. For example, in Wisconsin after strict voting laws were passed, voter turnout dropped 3.3 percent in the 2016 election, after ranking second in voter participation in 2008 and 2012. This targeted oppression is antithetical to the notion of a democracy, one in which those who are ruled have control over their government. As the United States has been a leader of global intervention in the name of democracy, the international community has a right and a duty to intervene on behalf of those in the United States who are being systematically denied their fundamental right to vote.