Voters Guide2014

www.tsdmemphis.com The New Tri-State Defender 2014 Voter Education Guide

FEDERAL AND STATE

REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY ELECTION

AND SHELBY COUNTY GENERAL ELECTION

SHELBY COUNTY, TENNESSEE

AUGUST 7

www.tsdmemphis.comThe New Tri-State Defender 2014 Voter Education Guide


When the executive editor of The New Tri-State Defender learned that I would vote for the very first time in the Aug. 7thelection, he declared me the “perfect” summer intern for the assignment of identifying and talking with two eighteen yearolds with nearly polar opposite views of participating in the electoral process.

My conversations with Taira Boltze and El’Keenan T. Liggins are the fruits of my journey of discovery.

– Nitoria M. Itson-Alexander

by Nitoria M. Itson-AlexanderSpecial to The New Tri-State Defender

El’Keenan T. Liggins is old enough to vote on Aug. 7th,but he has chosen to take a pass on that opportunity.

“I really don’t see the need to (register),” said Liggins, 18.And while the 2014 graduate of Hollis F. Price Middle

College High School is clearly among the young, voting-ageMemphians who are disaffected, he offers a view of what hethinks it will take for increased numbers of young adults todevelop faith in the voting process.

Young people, said Liggins, would be responsive to candi-dates who hear their concerns and show some real compas-sion.

Nitoria M. Itson-Alexander: What do you expect to gainfrom the candidates or what do you think they should bringto the table?

El’Keenan T. Liggins: I think the candidates should bringeffective ideas to the table. In recent elections, there has not been any effective changein the city. The candidates tell the community the bright ideas they have for the city butthrough their time in office, the ideas are not being put into effect. If a candidate saysthey are going to make a positive impact on the community, then they should.

NMIA: How do you plan on determining your vote?ETL: If I (decided) to vote, it would be because a candidate has persuaded me in the

areas I look for. I would have to formulate the real reason he or she has run for this posi-tion. “Are they trying to acquire this position for scandal and corruption?” (That) wouldbe the focus question. Additionally, he or she must have provided previous examples ofgreat things they have done for Memphis.

NMIA: What do you think is a serious problem or problems in Memphis that politi-cians need to really focus on?

ETL: An area I believe that should be focused on would be jobs in Memphis. As ahigh school graduate, it is very hard to find a good-paying job in Memphis. Most jobsrequire you some have some college education. For some of us, we would need a job tohelp pay for college. To solve that problem in Memphis, the city should bring a themepark. It would give a plethora of teenagers jobs throughout the school year and summer.It would also bring money into the city from its own residents and also visitors.

by Nitoria M. Itson-AlexanderSpecial to The New Tri-State Defender

Taira H. Boltze has taken all the steps needed to do some-thing on Aug. 7th that she never has done before – vote.

Boltze, 18, will cast her first ballot in the Federal andState Primary and Shelby County General Election. Sheplaces herself among the first-time teenage voters who areobserving candidates closely, probing for strengths andweaknesses.

The 2014 Millington Central High School grad registeredat the school. Yes, she has her voter’s registration card andshe knows where to go to join the voting public.

Nitoria M. Itson-Alexander: What do you expect to gainfrom the candidates or what do you think they should bringto the table?

Taira H. Boltze: I think the candidates should bring right-eousness, braveness and willingness to the table. They should also provide us with bet-ter intentions and decisions on making our home a better and safer environment for usto live in and for those who visit.

NMIA: How do you plan on determining your vote?THB: I plan on determining my vote by acknowledging the qualities that each and

every candidate has. For example, what are the positive aspects they have provided forthe community? Have they been involved in the community, are they still? Or are theygiving false hopes…

NMIA: What do you think is a serious problem or problems in Memphis that politi-cians need to really focus on?

THB: We have a horrible ongoing financial situation in Memphis that needs to besolved. We don’t have any entertainment in Memphis to bring money in Memphis andthat might be the leading cause to the situation. Teenagers and adults complain about theliving situation in Memphis. There is not (a) source of strong income.

As teenagers and young children, we had the pleasure of spending time at Libertylandon the weekends, school breaks, and summers. In addition, we had the Mid-South Fair,which was also taken away. The limited entertainment we have now is too expensive.For example, the movie theater, the price has sky rocketed from $7.50 to $10 in the lastcouple of years. How are people going to be able to afford that with financial difficul-

THE BUSINESS OF POLITICS VOTING RIGHTS MILESTONES

To vote or not to vote?

In recent elections, no ‘effective change in the city’

Please see ELECTIONS on page 5 Please see CANDIDATES on page 5

El’Keenan T. Liggins Taira H. Boltze

Candidates with ‘righteousness, braveness and willingness’

Candidates need money to market and promote themselves to the voters

See Page 4

The struggle for voting rights in America

See Page 5


by Carlee McCulloughSpecial to The New Tri-State Defender

For many people, campaign season is sim-ply about the election of a particular candi-date to a particular office. However, forentrepreneurs it is a peak season for business.

Campaigns need money to be successful.What happens to those campaign funds is, inpart, a report card on who the candidateschoose to do business with and the goodsand services being purchased. Legally re-quired campaign disclosure statements detailthe receipts and distributions for all to see.

Candidates need money to market andpromote themselves to the voters. So,where does the money go?

Designers & printers

To get the word out candidates spendmoney on tools to promote their name andmessage. The designer and the printer areusually the businesses that start the cam-paign spending.

Before any material is printed or a sign

is placed, the promotionalmaterial has to be designed.The graphic designer is themajor pit stop on the road tocampaigning. On the streetwe are seeing every conceiv-able color combination andfont usage. The designerbrings the ideas to life withstrategic placement of names,slogans and colors.

Once the printer receives thefile, the presses start to roll.The candidate’s name, imageand likeness will be plasteredon a wide range of items, including businesscards, post cards, yard signs and brochures.The sizes are varied and so is the materialthat is used on the signs. Printers typicallyare party neutral and work for all candidates.

Campaign tools

Brochures, post cards and pamphlets aretools used to get the candidate’s messageout to the community. Usually the votergets a little information on the qualifica-

tions of the candidate andthe platform. The graphicdesigner lays out all of theinformation on thebrochures, post cards, pam-phlets, yard signs, etc. Thenthe file is sent to the printer.

One of the most popularways to promote name recog-nition is through the use ofyard signs. The placement ofsigns in yards not only pro-motes name recognition butalso shows candidate support.

Large signs strategicallyplaced at busy intersections also are toolsused to increase the community’s recogni-tion of the candidate’s name.

Political websites provide an avenue forcandidates to explain their experience,qualifications and platform for the officethey are seeking to fill. Many websitesalso allow people to contribute funds elec-tronically.

Depending on how much money israised, some candidates are able to obtainradio spots and television commercials.

Television allows voters to see and hearthe candidate. It is by far the most expen-sive line item for candidates. Radio adver-tising is extremely popular and moreaffordable than television.

Alongside commercials, billboards canbe a costly endeavor. They can be highlyeffective, if placed on major highways andthoroughfares. Billboard location is criti-cal and also affects the pricing.

Affecting the receipts side

If you are passionate about an issueand/or an individual candidate, consideraffecting the receipts side of the businessof politics with a contribution to a candi-date or two or three.

No donation is too small. Take it fromsomeone who has experienced a campaignfrom several different sides, all donationsare appreciated. Small donations add up.

(Contact Carlee McCullough, Esq., at5308 Cottonwood Road, Suite 1A, Mem-phis, TN 38118, or email her [email protected].)

The business of politics A peek down the money trail

Carlee McCullough


NMIA: Do you think that you are underthe belief that nothing will change undernew politicians?

ETL: I believe things can possibly changeunder the right politicians. They must haveoutstanding qualities, such as honesty, com-passion and leadership. He or she will al-ways be honest with their community, whichwill restore faith from the citizens.

Secondly, one must have strong compas-sion for their city. A proud Memphian willbring in great things for their city and uplifttheir city. Lastly, leadership would be thekey description of a great politician. Mem-phis needs strong-minded people in officethat can handle anything that is thrown atthem. They should lead this community inthe right direction….which is forward.

Memphis has become less enthusiasticbecause everything is leaving Memphis.Politicians that are needed for Memphiswould have to build strong connectionswith people who will want to bring amaz-

ing things to Memphis.

NMIA: What would be your solution torestore young people’s faith in politics?

ETL: My solution to restore faith inpolitics in young people would be to givethem some sense of hope. Listen to theirideas, and make an effort to address theirproblems.

Many believe young people do not havea sense of the real world, but through ob-servation young people have a grown tounderstand the concept of the “realworld.”

ties?Another problem will be the job oppor-

tunities, which tie into the entertainmentcost. With the scarce number of job oppor-tunities and those that do choose to hire,people are barely making a living. Theycan’t possibly pay for the outrageous costof the little entertainment we have afterpaying bills.

CANDIDATES

continued from page 3

ELECTIONS


In essence, the struggle for voting rights inAmerica over the past two centuries has been atwo-part battle. The first part was to win citizen-ship rights for people of color. The second partwas to win voting rights for all citizens regard-less of gender, economic status, race, or nationalorigin.

1776: Abigail Adams asks the ContinentalCongress to support women's rights.

Her husband John Adams ridicules her re-quest and vows to fight the “Despotism of thepetticoat.”

1776-1828: Struggle to remove religious re-strictions

Between the first Continental Congress in1776 and adoption of the U.S. Constitution in1787 the former colonies evolved into states,some of which barred Jews, Quakers, Catholics,and other "heretics," from voting or holding of-fice. The 1778 Constitution of South Carolina,for example, stated that "No person shall be eli-gible to sit in the house of representatives unlesshe be of the Protestant religion." The DelawareConstitution of 1776 stated that: "Every personwho shall be chosen a member of either house,or appointed to any office or place of trust, be-fore taking his seat, or entering upon the execu-tion of his office, shall ... also make andsubscribe the following declaration, to wit: I, AB. do profess faith in God the Father, and inJesus Christ His only Son, and in the HolyGhost, one God, blessed for evermore; and Ido acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Oldand New Testament to be given by divine inspi-ration."

When the new United States Constitution isadopted in 1787 (see below), Article VI pro-hibits religion restrictions: "... but no religioustest shall ever be required as a qualification toany office or public trust under the UnitedStates." But struggles to remove the pre-existingreligious bars continue through the early 1800s,with Maryland finally extending voting rights toJews in 1828.

1787: U.S. Constitution Adopted.In the debates over adopting the U.S. Consti-

tution there are bitter arguments over whoshould be allowed to vote. In particular, theslave-states insist that only white males be al-

lowed to vote, yet they simultaneously demandthat their Black slaves be counted when figuringup how many members of Congress each stateis entitled to.

The Constitutional Convention cannot agreeon any national voting-rights standard so theyleave it up to each individual state. This resultsin an absurd system whereby the Federal gov-ernment determines who can be a citizen for thenation as a whole, but each individual state de-termines which of their citizens have the right tovote.

Most of the states decree that only whitemales are eligible to vote, and most limit thevote to those white males who own a certainamount of property. (In other words, if you're anapprentice, or a renter, or homeless, you can'tvote.) Since only a small minority of whitemales own enough property to qualify, the greatmajority of the population is denied the vote. Bysome estimates, less than 5% of the populationare eligible to vote in the election of 1800.

(Note that under the original Constitution theonly Federal office anyone could directly votefor was Congressman because the President waselected by the Electoral College, and Senatorswere appointed by the state governments. Westill cannot directly vote for the President,which is why Bush occupied the White Housein 2000 even though Gore received at least500,000 more votes.)

1777-1807: Women lose the right to vote inall states.

The states of New York, Massachusetts, NewHampshire, and New Jersey, which had previ-ously allowed women to vote rescind thoserights. After 1807, no state allows women tovote.

1790: Citizenship limited to "whites."

The 1790 Naturalization Law explicitly states

that only "free white" immigrants can becomenaturalized citizens. Since "white" is defined aspure European ancestry, this effectively pre-vents immigrants from anywhere else (or immi-grants of mixed-race ancestry) from becomingnaturalized citizens.

And under the myth that Native-Americansare "citizens" of their "sovereign" Indian "na-tions" (meaning the reservations), they cannotbe citizens of the United States. Therefore, Indi-ans cannot vote.

1788-1856: Struggle to remove propertyrestrictions.

For 68 years there are struggles and move-ments in the various states to remove the prop-erty restrictions on the right to vote. Thesebattles are often bitter and occasionally violent.

In the state elections of 1821, for example,three out of four New York City males do notmeet the property requirement and can not vote(women, of course, can not vote at all no matterhow rich they are). Over the next few years anintense and eventually successful political strug-gle is waged to remove all property require-ments for male voters. But only for white males.The voting requirement for free Black men isactually raised. The result is that out of 12,500free Black men in New York City, only 60 areable to vote in the election of 1826.

1820-1865: Abolition movement to endslavery.

The first African slaves are brought to NorthAmerican in 1619 (a year before the arrival ofthe Mayflower). Resistance begins immediatelywith intermittent slave uprisings and frequentescapes. Often the escaped slaves join Indiantribes who fight to defend tribal homelandsagainst white encroachment and expansion ofthe slave system.

Political opposition to slavery among whitesin the northern states begins to coalesce in theearly 1820s. With the founding of the AmericanAnti-Slave Society in 1833, a broad, inter-racialpolitical movement committed to ending slav-ery commences — openly in the northern states,clandestinely in the south. This "Abolition

Voting Rights Milestones

Please see MILESTONES, page 6


Movement" grows in size and intensity and ismet with increasingly violent opposition fromslave-holders and slave states. Abolitionists arearrested, beaten, and murdered; their homes areburned and their presses destroyed.

But within the Abolition Movement, there arebitter disagreements regarding the future offreed slaves. Some favor full citizenship, includ-ing the right to vote, others advocate some formof 2nd-class citizenship without voting rights.Many want to expel freed slaves and send them"back" to Africa (though, of course, the vast ma-jority of slaves have been born in America). Inopposition to the Anti-Slave Society, these "col-onizers" form the American Colonization Soci-ety, which sends 20,000 former slaves to Africa,where they carve out the nation of Liberia.

1836: Texas denies vote to Mexicans.

After revolting from Mexico in 1836, theshort-lived Republic of Texas denies citizenship(and the right to own property) to anyone whohad not supported the revolution. All non-Ang-los are assumed to be part of thatcategory — even those who had fought for therevolution.

When Texas is admitted to the union as aslave-state in 1845, the Mexicans remaining inTexas are granted U.S. citizenship and property-rights by the Federal government — in theory.But Mexican-Americans who try to independ-ently vote face widespread beatings, burnings,and lynchings — except in cases where largelandowners force their employees to vote as agroup under supervision of their foremen whoensure that they all vote for the owner's pre-ferred candidates.

After the Civil War, the methods used inTexas and other southern states to deny votingrights to Blacks are also applied to Mexican-Americans.

1848: Mexican-Americans are denied vot-ing rights in the southwest.

Under the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,which ends the Mexican-American war, Mexi-cans who remain in the new territories con-quered by the U.S. are supposed to become fullU.S. citizens according to legislation that Con-gress is supposed to pass.

For California, that legislation takes the formof admitting it to the union as a free-state in1850. While technically U.S. citizens, Mexican-Americans in both Texas and California are de-nied the vote through violence and state "votereligibility" laws. (In other words, in regards tovoting there are similarities between the situa-tions faced by Mexican-Americans and "free"Blacks.)

The territories of Arizona and New Mexico,however, are not admitted to the union as statesuntil 1912. During the 64 years between thesigning of the treaty and statehood, Mexican-Americans in those territories are held in a kindof non-citizen legal limbo without voting rightsand where their civil rights can be (and oftenare) easily violated. During the period of tranis-tion from Mexican to U.S. governance, all dis-puted claims and laws related to land, water, andlivestock are resolved by judges and politicianswho are exclusively elected by the white settlerswho are disputing grants and deeds dating back

to the Mexican and Spanish eras. In some casessettlment of these disputes take generations andmany Mexican-Americans believe that the longdelay in granting them voting rights is directlyconnected to the fortunes at stake.

1848-1920: Women's Suffrage Movement.In 1848 the first Women's Rights Convention

is held in Seneca Falls, NY. It demands thatwomen be granted all rights as full citizens in-cluding the right to vote.

For the next 72 years women — and somemale supporters — speak out, petition, lobby,sue, protest, march, and engage in civil-disobe-dience, for the right to vote. They brave beat-ings, mob attacks, rape, jail, seizure anddestruction of property, forced-divorce (andconsequent loss of children), forced-feeding ofhunger strikers, and murder, to fight for theirright to be full citizens.

1850: Asian immigration.With the California gold rush, Asian immi-

gration becomes significant for the first time,mostly in the West. Under the "whites-only"clause of the 1790 Naturalization Law, Asianimmigrants cannot be citizens — but what abouttheir children born in America? Government of-ficials try to avoid this "problem" by preventingAsian women from coming ashore. Many aresent back, but some avoid detection and manageto get off the ship. And some Asian men marrywomen of other races — some of whom are citi-zens — what happens when their boys reach age21?

1856: Property restrictions removed.The last state to finally eliminate the property

qualification is North Carolina in 1856.1861-1865: Civil War and Emancipation.The struggle against slavery eventually leads

to bloody Civil War. 360,000 Union sol-diers — Black and white — die to defeat slav-ery. That is 130 out of every 10,000 persons inthe Northern states. (For comparison, deaths inthe Vietnam War numbered 3 out of every10,000.)

The Emancipation Proclamation (1863) andthe 13th Amendment (1865) eventually endslavery as a legal concept (though the actualtreatment of share-croppers, tenant farmers, andplantation laborers continues to closely resem-ble slavery in all but the legal formalities).

But it is still left to individual states to deter-mine who is eligible to vote. Some Northernstates extend the vote to Blacks — but moststates do not.

1867: 14th Amendment extends citizenshipto Blacks.

Under the 14th Amendment all states are re-quired to recognize Black (and white) males ascitizens.

But for the first time women of all races areexplicitly excluded in the Constitution from fullcitizenship in regards to voting.

1868: Women petition that womens' suf-frage be included in the draft 15th Amend-ment.

The men of Congress deny their petition.1870: 15th Amendment extends vote to

Blacks.Adoption of the 15th Amendment in 1870 ex-

tends voting rights to Black males — in theory.In reality, there is massive resistance to the

intent of the 15th Amendment, particularly inthe Southern states, but also in the North andMidwest. Violence and economic reprisal areused to intimidate and prevent Black men fromvoting.

The 15th Amendment does not apply to Na-tive-Americans or Asians because they cannotbe citizens. Similarly, it does not apply to Mexi-can-Americans in New Mexico and Arizona be-cause they live in territories that are not yetstates. While legally eligible to vote in Texasand California, Mexican-Americans are still de-nied the vote through violence and economic re-taliation.

1867-1877: Reconstruction.During the Reconstruction period hundreds of

thousands of Black men risk their lives andproperty to vote, and many are elected to office.In fact, for a period in the late 1860s moreAfrican-Americans are registered to vote thanwhites in the states of the former Confederacy.

1877: End of reconstruction, abandonmentof 15th Amendment.

Because of widespread cheating on bothsides, the vote-count and outcome of the 1876presidential election between Hayes the Repub-lican and Tilden the Democrat is bitterly dis-puted — particularly the count in the state ofFlorida. In the end, all disputed counts are re-solved by a special committee appointed byCongress. Republicans outnumber Democratson the committee by 8 to 7. All disputes are de-cided in favor of the Republicans by a vote of 8to 7. Hayes is declared the winner even thoughmost impartial observers believe that Tildenwon the popular vote.

It is widely understood that there's a back-room deal with the Democrats who representthe overwhelming majority of white voters inthe South. In return for the Democrats acceptingHayes' victory, the Republicans promise thatHayes will remove the troops and officials whohave been providing at least some limited pro-tection to Blacks in the South. And that the newHayes administration will cease enforcing the15th Amendment and other civil rights laws.This deal becomes known as the "Compromiseof 1877." The "compromise" being that the Re-publicans retain power in Washington whilewhite-racists throughout the country are givenfree reign to oppress and persecute non-whites.

Hayes takes office, the troops and officialsare removed. Civil rights enforcement ends:

Reign of terror. The Ku Klux Klan and otherracist terrorist organizations increase their at-tacks against African-Americans. Blacks are ex-pelled from office. African-American maleswho try to vote are fired from their jobs, evictedfrom their homes, beaten, and in many casesbrutally lynched. Black property owners areburned out, Black businesses destroyed, and en-tire African-American towns are wiped out.

Legal disenfranchisement. New state lawsare passed to sabotage and render ineffective the15th Amendment. Among these are the so-called "Literacy Tests" that make it impossiblefor non-whites to register, and "Grandfather-clauses" that restrict voting rights to those menwhose grandfathers had been eligible tovote — a requirement that descendants of slavescannot possibly meet.

Poll taxes. Many states impose taxes on vot-ing. Anyone — Black or white — who cannotafford to pay the tax cannot vote. Since the taxesare high and have to be paid in cash, voting isthus limited to affluent white males. In effect,this restores a property requirement for voting.

Segregation laws. Laws mandating separa-tion of the races in education, government serv-ices, public facilities & accommodations,restrooms, transportation, drinking fountains

and so on are passed throughout the South andMidwest. Known as the "Jim Crow" system,their goal is to force African-Americans intofeudal semi-slavery. The many Blacks who re-sist are beaten, jailed, and murdered. Similarsystems are imposed in Western states againstLatinos, Native-Americans, and Asians.

Within a few years most Blacks are removedfrom the voter registration rolls and denied theright to vote. All African-Americans who holdelected office are driven out. In Louisiana, forexample, by 1900 fewer than 5,000 African-Americans are registered to vote, down from ahigh of 130,000.

1870-1923: Asians denied citizenship.The Naturalization Act of 1870 amends the

1790 Naturalization Law to limit citizenship to"white persons and persons of African descent."Thus the ban preventing Asian and Latino im-migrants from becoming naturalized citizens iscontinued.

But the wave of Asian immigration to Cali-fornia and other Western states in the mid-19thCentury begins to weaken the "whites only"provision, particularly in regards to childrenwho are born in the United States and are thus(presumptively) American citizens.

In 1898 the Supreme Court confirms thatchildren of Asians who are born in the UnitedStates are automatically citizens. In response tothis "yellow peril," over the following decades aseries of "exclusion acts," such as the ChineseExclusion Act of 1882, and "gentlemen's agree-ments," and court rulings are put in place tolimit (or prevent altogether) any further immi-gration by Asians.

As with African-Americans, Latinos, and In-dians, violence, lynching, and economic retalia-tion are widely used against Asians whetherthey are citizens or not.

1878: Woman Suffrage Amendment intro-duced in Congress.

The amendment is introduced in 1878. Ittakes 42 years of courageous struggle to finallyratify it in 1920.

1890-1920: Some states grant women theright to vote.

First Wyoming, then Utah, Colorado, Idaho,Washington, and California extend voting rightsto women. Other states follow.

1913: 17th Amendment requires directpopular election of Senators.

After decades of political action and publicpressure from the Populist movement, a consti-tutional amendment is passed requiring directelection of Senators by the people rather thanSenators being appointed by state legislators.

1920: 19th Amendment extends right tovote to women.

After an epic 72-year struggle, women finallywin the right to vote. But prejudice and discrim-ination against women candidates and office-holders continues for decades.

1924: Native-American citizenship.Congress passes legislation extending United

States citizenship to all Indians born in theUnited States. Many states continue to deny Na-tive-Americans the right to vote using the samekinds of legal fictions, violence, and economicretaliation that is used to deny the vote toBlacks, Latinos, and Asians.

1942-1952: Asian citizenship rights.In order to strengthen the U.S. military during

WWII, Filipinos in the United States and the

MILESTONES


Please see MILESTONES,page 18


Downtown Early Voting Location: Shelby County Office Building, 157 Poplar Ave. 38103

Weekdays 10:00 AM to 7:00 PMSaturdays 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

20 Days Before every Election Day until 5 Days Before every Election Day AND

Early Voting: July 18th - August 2th • Election Day: August 7th • Early Voting Satellite Locations

To Be Determined for Each Election by Election Commission Board Weekdays 10:00 AM to 7:00 PMSaturdays 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

7777 Walnut Grove Rd. 38120 3939 Riverdale Rd. 38141 7942 Church Rd. 380532000 Appling Rd. 380164536 Summer Ave. 381225586 Stage Rd. 381341574 Shelby Dr. 38116575 Shelton Dr. 38017915 Chelsea Ave. 381071141 S. Barksdale St. 38114 152 E. Parkway N., 38104 4982 Knight Arnold Rd. 38118 70 N. Bellevue Blvd. 3810660 S. Parkway E., 38106 7786 Poplar Pike 38138 3295 Powers Rd. 38128 9817 Huff N Puff Rd., 38002 3560 S. Third St. 38109 3121 Range Line Rd. 38127 1106 Colonial Rd. 38117

Agri-Center International Anointed Temple of Praise Baker Community Center Bellevue Baptist Church Berclair Church of Christ

Bethel ChurchAbundant Grace Church

Collierville Church of ChristDave Wells Community Center

Glenview Community CenterGreater Lewis Street Baptist Church

Greater Middle Baptist ChurchMississippi Blvd. Church-Family Life Center

Mt. Zion Baptist ChurchNew Bethel Baptist Church

Raleigh U.M. ChurchRefuge Church

Riverside Baptist ChurchShiloh Baptist Church

White Station Church of Christ


Philippine Islands are declared to be Americancitizens in 1942. This means that they are eligiblefor military service and the draft. (In 1946 thiscitizenship declaration is revoked by the RecisionAct in order to deny Filipinos their veteran bene-fits, voting rights, and of course citizenship.)

To strengthen the WWII alliance with China,the Chinese Exclusion Acts are overturned in1943.

In 1946 the exclusion acts against immigrantsfrom the Indian subcontinent are repealed. In1952 all remaining Asian exclusion acts are re-placed by the immigration "quota system" thatallows for some Asian immigration but greatlyfavors European immigrants.

1944: "White-only" Primaries Ruled Un-constitutional.

After the "Compromise of 1877" ends Recon-struction, most southern Blacks are denied thevote. Out of loathing for Lincoln (a Republican),fury at their defeat by the hated "Yankees" in theCivil War, and rage at Emancipation of theirBlack slaves, southern whites refuse to vote forany Republican for any office — ever. Thus the"Solid South" comes into being — only Democ-rats can be elected. White southerners proudlydeclare themselves "Yellow-dog Democrats,"meaning that if the Democratic Party nominatesa yellow dog for office they will vote for the dogbefore they vote for a Republican candidate.

In practical terms, the "Solid South" meansthat the real election is the Democratic Primarybecause the Democrat who wins the nominata-tion inevitably wins the general election. Inmany southern states, the white-controlledDemocratic Party decrees that only whites canvote in the Democratic primary. This effectivelydisenfranchises the few Blacks who have man-aged to register to vote because they are pre-vented from voting in the only elections thathave any meaning (the primaries).

In 1944, NAACP attorney Thurgood Mar-shall wins Smith v. Allwright in the U.S.Supreme Court which rules that "all-white" pri-mary elections are unconstitutional.

1945-1960: GIs fight for civil rights.When Black, Latino, and Indian GIs return

from the battlefields of WWII (and later Korea),they demand that all American citizens have theright to vote regardless of race. They had foughtand died for democracy abroad, yet they cannotvote at home. (One out of every eight AmericanGIs was an African-American; Latinos and Na-tive-Americans also made up significant por-tions of the armed forces, which for the mostpart were organized on a segregated basis.)

On local, state, and federal levels GIs fightagainst the laws, customs, and oppression deny-ing them the vote and other civil rights. BeforeWWII the NAACP numbered around 50,000members, in the post-war years it swells tentimes to over 500,000.

But the racists who hold economic power andpolitical office — particularly in the U.S.Senate — are too strong. Most legislative reme-dies are blocked and few court cases are suc-cessful. For the most part, the GI movementsare defeated and suppressed. Many GIs who hadfought to free Europe from Nazi tyranny findthemselves imprisoned for demanding the rightto vote, and others are viciouslymurdered — often by police and sheriffs.

Yet despite a wave of repression, they domanage to eliminate the poll tax in all but 5states. And in 1948 the armed forces are de-seg-regated.

1948: State laws denying the vote to Na-tive-Americans are overturned.

In one of the post-war period's few successfullegal challenges, the Federal courts overturn thelast state laws (Maine, Arizona, New Mexico)that explicitly prevent Indians from voting. Vio-lence, economic retaliation, and different kindsof legal tricks continue to be used to preventNative-Americans from voting.

1954-1960: Early Civil Rights Movementactivity.

In the early 1950s, a number of school deseg-regation cases are filed in the federal courts bycourageous students and parents who risk lifeand property by opposing the segregation sys-tem. In 1954 these cases are consolidated andwon with the Supreme Court's decision inBrown v Board of Education.

In 1955 and 1956 African-Americans op-posed to segregation boycott the city busses inMontgomery Alabama and Tallahassee Florida.These successful boycotts mark significant vic-tories against segregation in the deep south.

Hundreds of voting-rights lawsuits are filed instate and federal courts. Most are either defeated,or if won they are left unenforced. But Citizen-ship Schools, voter education projects, and "I'ma registered voter — Are you?" campaigns beginto proliferate among African-Americans at thegrass-roots level across the south.

1960-1965: Civil Rights Movement de-mands the right to vote.

With the explosion of the direct-action phaseof the Civil Rights Movement — sit-ins, free-dom rides, marches, boycotts — voting rightsand segregation emerge as the two central is-sues, intertwined and inseparable.

Participatory direct-action organizations suchas CORE, SCLC, and SNCC take the fight forvoting rights and de-segregation into the deepestdepths of the racist South — Mississippi, Ala-bama, Louisiana, and Georgia. The slogan be-comes "One Man, One Vote," and instead oflawsuits the strategy is to organize people at thegrass-roots to directly challenge and defy theentire "whites-only" system by demanding de-segregation and the right to vote face-to-face,county-by-county, state-by-state.

Resistance to Black voter registration and de-fense of segregation by the KKK and White Cit-izens Councils is ruthless. And the entire rangeof law-enforcement — from the cop on the beatto FBI Headquarters in Washington — mobi-lizes to defend the established order. Tens ofthousands of would-be voters are fired orevicted, entire tent cities have to be set up tohouse share-croppers thrown off their land fortrying to register to vote. Hundreds, then thou-sands are jailed. Beatings, burnings, and eco-nomic retaliation are wide-spread. Many — theactual number has never been counted — aremurdered. This resistance to civil-rights is coor-dinated and orchestrated by powerful politicaland economic interests.

But the Movement soldiers on, we bury ourdead and weep for our wounded but we don'tturn back. The Movement explodes in Albany,Americus, Birmingham, Bogalusa, Cambridge,Canton, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Danville, Gads-den, Gainesville, Greenwood, Greensboro, Hat-tiesburg, Jackson, McComb, Monroe,Montgomery, Nashville, New Orleans, Rock

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Hill, Ruleville, St. Augustine, Selma, Shreve-port, Tallahasse, and a thousand other towns andhamlets. It is a mass Movement of people, notlawyers or lobbyists (though they too play im-portant roles).

1964: 24th Amendment ends poll taxes.The 24th Amendment prohibits poll taxes in

federal elections.1964-1965: Freedom Summer and the

Selma to Montgomery MarchDuring the "Freedom Summer" of 1964 close

to a thousand civil rights workers of all racesand backgrounds from across the country con-verge on Mississippi to support voting rightsand confront segregation. This is followed inAugust by the Mississippi Freedom DemocraticParty's challenge to the whites-only Mississippidelegation at the Democratic convention in At-lantic City. The self-evident justice of that chal-lenge is ignored by Johnson and Humphrey andthe challenge is denied.

A few months later mass protests andmarches begin in Selma Alabama. Thousands ofAfrican-Americans put their lives on the line byattempting to register to vote in Selma and sur-rounding counties. They are met with savage vi-olence from police and Klan. They facebeatings, gassing,jailings, and murder.Mass marches inSelma, Mont-gomery, Demopolis,Marion, Camdenand elsewhere areviciously attacked.Jimmie Lee Jack-son, Rev. JamesReeb, Viola Luizzo,and JonathanDaniels are mur-dered. But the peo-ple refuse to backdown and the move-ment grows as thou-sands of Americansfrom all walks oflife come to Selmain support. 25,000people — of allraces — march tothe Statehouse inMontgomery Ala-bama, the "cradle ofthe Confederacy."

1965: Passage of

Voting Rights Act.It takes 57 days of floor-fighting and mass

protests in the streets of Washington to break thefilibuster by Southern Senators determined toblock the Voting Rights Act. For just the secondtime in history, a southern filibuster on a civil-rights issue is defeated on a bitterly dividedvote. The Act is passed.

Though in some respects weaker than whathad been hoped for, among other provisions theVoting Rights Act:

Outlaws voting phony"requirements" — such as "literacytests," — designed to deny the vote to peoplebased on their race or color. This applies notonly to Blacks but also to Indians, Asians, andMexican-Americans.

Authorizes the Federal government to takeover registration of voters in areas where localofficials have consistently denied voting rightsto non-whites.

Establishes that fluency in English cannot bemade a requirement for voting eligibility.

(Historical information and photo courtesy ofCivil Rights Movement Veterans:www.crmvet.org)

Voters Guide2014

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