STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF BLACK LAWYERS ON THE US SUPREME COURT DECISION IN LOUISIANA V. CALLAIS

On April 29th, the US Supreme Court issued a decision in the voting rights

case of Louisiana v. Callais dramatically gutting the last remaining protections of

the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA). The National Conference of Black Lawyers

(NCBL) condemns this decision by the US Supreme Court as a clear violation of the

basic principle of the right to vote. The majority decision negates the historical

record of the necessity to have a Voting Rights Act in the first place, almost a

hundred years after the passage of the Reconstruction Amendments – the

Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments – to the US Constitution.

A critical flaw in the majority’s decision is that it fails to recognize race-

conscious redistricting as a corrective tool that is essential and designed to

counteract centuries of exclusion and gerrymandering, which regrettably continue

through voter suppression and other schemes throughout the country. The

essence of Section 2 was crafted to protect and create opportunities for the

exercise of political power of Black voters and other historically disenfranchised

members of the community. The Court’s decision undermines the very protections

the Act has sought to secure.

A correct reading and analysis of the historical record, clearly establish that the

Reconstruction Amendments and the Voting Rights Act emerged from a long and

bloody struggle to overthrow laws and practices that denied Black citizens equal

participation in the democratic structures. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished

1slavery; the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed equal protection of the laws; and

the Fifteenth Amendment prohibited voting discrimination on the basis of race.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the subsequent amendments were developed to

provide guarantees and protection against discriminatory voting practices and the

dilution of Black political rights and influence. The current majority view of the

Court contradicts not only the letter of the Reconstruction Amendments and the

Voting Rights Act but the spirit and goal to have a democracy where Black

Americans can vote, have their votes count, and elect representatives of their

choosing at all levels of government.

The National Conference of Black Lawyers calls on the Congress to counter

the risks of normalizing practices that prioritize political and partisan advantage

over equal citizenship. NCBL also calls on its members and other legal and

community organizations committed to justice and the basic rights of all people to

urge Congress to act decisively and pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John

Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to strengthen and clarify the fundamental

right to vote.

Whitley Carpenter, Co-Chair of the National Conference of Black Lawyers,

stated, “This decision may be a setback, but it is not the final word. From

Reconstruction to the Civil Rights Movement to today, the expansion of voting

rights in this country has always been driven by the people. That same collective

power remains in the hands of the people. NCBL is committed to continuing this

2struggle alongside communities across the country to protect, defend, and expand

the right to vote.”

Mawuli Davis, Co-Chair of the National Conference of Black Lawyers, added,

“This moment demands more than concern; it demands action. The erosion of

voting rights cannot be accepted or normalized. Lawyers, advocates, and

communities must work together to ensure that the right to vote is protected,

expanded, and made real for everyone.”

The fight to ensure democracy is at a critical stage and needs all hands to

join together to win.