What's at Issue:
On Thursday July 13th, the House will cast an important vote on an amendment sponsored Rep. Steve King’s (R-IA), which would ban all non-English language ballots—effectively disenfranchising many U.S. citizens still in the process of learning English.  If passed, Rep. King’s amendment will overturn multi-lingual ballot mandates in Sections 203 and 4(f)(4) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. It is problematic enough that supporters of this amendment link its need to immigration issues, when of course voting rights only apply to US citizens. What’s truly at issue is whether this major vote will dismantle hard-earned civil rights legislation, and turn back the clock by limiting the percentage of Americans who can actually participate in American democracy. 

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 will expire in 2007 if it is not reauthorized this year. Despite the fact that bipartisan majorities in both houses say they support reauthorization, and President Bush has pledged to sign a reauthorization bill, the bill is stalled in both the House and Senate. Reauthorization is being held up by amendments, like the one sponsored by Rep. Cliff Stearns that failed two weeks ago, which threaten the Act’s basic provisions including the ability of language-minority citizens to access their right to vote.

Andrew’s Expertise:
A fellow at the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, Andrew Friedman is also a lawyer, organizer, and well-known advocate for the rights of immigrants and language minorities New York City. He is the founding Co-Director of Make the Road by Walking, a not-for-profit, membership-led organization of residents in low-income and immigrant communities that is known for its proven track record of success in improving the communities and workplaces of its members. As a DMI Fellow, Andrew focuses on issues of language access and immigrant rights. He has published widely on the subject, including recent articles in TomPaine.com, the New York Daily News, Newsday, AM New York, and El Diario. 

Quote:
"Later this week, the House will have an opportunity to honor the legacy of the civil rights movement by rejecting Representative Steve King's effort to undermine the language assistance requirements of Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act. Democracy in a multi-cultural society requires affirmative measures on the part of the government to ensure fairness to and inclusion of all US citizens.  Just last month, Members of Congress voted down a similar attack on the rights of U.S. citizens who are not native English speakers and renewed the fundamental promise of the Voting Rights Act to prevent discrimination and to ensure that all citizens have an equal opportunity to participate in our democracy. It is vital that Congress again reject this anti-democratic proposal."

Andrew Freidman
Fellow, The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy
Co-Director, Make the Road by Walking

CONTACT:    
Elana Levin
Communications Manager
Drum Major Institute for Public Policy
Work: 212.909.9581
Cell: 347.512.2805   
elevin@drummajorinstitute.org