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Michigan Chronicle

Vol. 84 – No. 33 | April 21-27, 2021

COMMENTARY

The Fight To Protect Your Vote By David Baschal and James W. Ribbron Detroit Champions for Hope – Men of Hope

The Voting Rights Act of 1965, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Voting Rights Act is one of the most far-reaching pieces of civil rights legislation in U.S. history. Though African Americans had a constitutional right to vote, they were often denied that right, especially in southern states. Poll taxes, literacy tests, and physical intimidation were among the methods used to prevent African American people from voting. African Americans were paying taxes and fighting America’s wars, but were not allowed to vote when they came home from those wars. The struggle for the right to vote was a long and often bloody struggle that culminated in the 1965 law. But in 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a key part of that law, allowing nine states that have historically suppressed African American voters to change their voting laws without federal approval. Today, there are efforts in 43 states with legislation aimed at voter suppression, targeting people of color, urbanites, low-income communities, and other groups whose full participation in future elections is seen by Republicans as a threat. The right to vote allows citizens the ability to bring change. Some conservatives have feared that if African Americans vote, they will vote as a block and impact issues and laws that matter to them. They are laser-focused on preventing certain people from voting. Across the country, Republicans are trying to pass voter suppression laws. Why? They claim that it is to prevent voter fraud. However, we just had an election in which more people voted than have ever voted in this country and by any measure, it was a free and fair, safe, and secure election. Even Trump’s appointed head of cyber security, Christopher Krebs, called it the most secure election in American history. Then he was fired for stating the truth. The evidence that this was a free and fair election is overwhelming. In all 60 plus cases, Trump’s lawyers had to admit before judges that they had no evidence of their widespread voter fraud claims. In 2018, there was voter fraud, by Republican Mark Harris in North Carolina and he was caught. But there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud. The Big Lie is that Joe Biden did not win the election. The Big Lie has hurt our country in numerous ways. It led to the seditious attack on the U.S. Capitol. It has led to some people erroneously believing that the election results were not accurate. Now, it has led to the far right proposing and even passing laws to suppress the vote.

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Michigan’s GOP Aims to Suppress Black and Brown Votes By Whitney Gresham

absentee ballots and allow only political parties to designate election challengers.

While the nation’s eyes have been on Georgia, its Governor and state legislators’ racist effort to suppress its Black and Brown citizens’ votes, Michigan Republicans have launched a similar assault of their own on democracy. And it is aimed squarely at undermining Black, Brown, and young Michiganders’ ability to exercise their right to vote, freely.

During a recent interview, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson told MSNBC that it was a sad state of affairs that spoke more to the Republican Party’s lack of ability to engage voters with compelling ideas and policy proposals than any purported election fraud.

Republican legislators who control both the Senate and House chambers are expected to begin consideration of a host of voter suppression legislation they have introduced that either restricts or otherwise complicates voters’ ability to cast votes as quickly as they did during the recent 2020 Presidential and national elections. According to the Michigan Secretary of State’s Office, a record of more than 5.5 million Michigan residents voted, with 3.3 million casting absentee ballots, a constitutional guarantee approved by voters in 2018 during a special referendum. President Joe Biden defeated the twice-impeached scandal-plagued Republican incumbent, Donald Trump, in November. After winning the state by less than a percentage point over Hillary Clinton in 2016, Trump lost Michigan to Biden 50.6 percent to 47.9 percent. Trump, however, lied and claimed that he won Michigan but was cheated out of his victory by voter fraud and corruption in Detroit and Wayne County. Although his complaint was a provable, demonstrable lie, the Michigan GOP, like the GOP in Georgia and elsewhere across the country, uses it as a pretense to push forth nearly 40 voter suppression bills under the guise of protecting election integrity. However, their critics claim it is a thinly veiled effort to hinder the ability of likely Democratic voters, particularly Black, Brown and young voters, from having a voice in the election process. A Senate Committee is expected to debate the Republican-sponsored bills that, according to critics, would among other measures, require absentee voters to mail in a paper copy of their ID with their ballot application, shorten the deadline for returning absentee ballots, bar clerks from purchasing prepaid postage for absentee ballot return envelopes and limit the secretary of state’s ability to help voters request an absentee ballot, require video surveillance of drop boxes for

“We’re seeing one political party, a major political party in this country, try to block access to democracy as opposed to simply just engaging in a dialogue over ideas and winning the vote through that,” she said. “I think what this also underscores is that the lies, the misinformation that we saw emerge throughout the post-election moment last year, that of course escalated into violence in the Capitol on January 6th, has now manifested itself in the outgrowth of these policies all across the states, all across the country.” “So this is essentially a continuation of the big lie,” Benson said. The Detroit NAACP organized a rally outside the Capitol in opposition to the legislation. Detroit NAACP Branch President Rev. Wendell Anthony echoed Benson’s sentiments to CNN in an earlier interview. “This is a part of the continuous strategic treachery and seditionist activity that Republicans are engaged in around the country,” said Anthony. “We knew it was coming. We knew what they were doing in Georgia is not unique. This is part of a national strategy they have to suppress the Black and Brown vote in this country.” “They cannot abide losing -- so they have concluded, if we cannot win, let us cheat. Let us go around them. Let us suppress them. Let us take their votes away. If we cannot add to our voting rolls, let us subtract from theirs -- that’s what this is about,” Anthony said. However, Michigan Senate Republican leader Mike Shirkey tweeted that the proposed legislation is aimed at “making it easier to vote and harder to cheat.” Which is a lie. Michigan Republicans have been endeavoring to openly suppress Black and Brown Michiganders’ votes for nearly 20 years. As far back as 2004, former Republican Senator Papageorge told the Detroit Free Press that Republicans had to

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Derek Chauvin Found Guilty of Murdering George Floyd By Sherri Kolade Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of the murder of George Floyd, NY Times reported. Chauvin was found guilty on all three of the charges of committing first-, second-and third-degree murder of Floyd, an unarmed Black man who repeatedly told Chauvin and other officers he was in distress and could not breathe. On Monday, jurors in the Chauvin trial deliberated for more than four hours following a full day of closing arguments from both the prosecution and defense attorney. The prosecution rested the state’s case a little afternoon on Monday after addressing jurors for a little more than an hour and a half, imploring the panel to “believe their eyes” and what they saw in the extended video of Floyd’s detention and his subsequent death after Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds. The attorney who delivered closing arguments for the state told jurors that “being big is not a crime” and that Chauvin wasn’t using reasonable force to restrain Floyd, but that he was inflicting pain, and that Floyd dies “looking into the eyes of strangers” rather than the

“And now the cause of justice is in … the hands of the people of the United States,” he added. “George Floyd mattered — he was loved by his family and friends. His death (shook) the conscious … of the whole world.” He added that Floyd mattered because he was a human being. “I urge everyone to honor the legacy of George Floyd … to continue the transformation of justice — it is in your hands now,” he said. Michigan’s Community Leader’s weighed in on the verdict:

George Floyd face of a loved one as he called out for his mother. Keith Ellison, the attorney general of Minnesota, spoke during a press conference live on CNN about how the verdict impacted the nation and world. “Everyone involved has pursued one goal: justice,” he said. “We pursued justice wherever it led … I want to thank the community for giving us that time and allowing us to do our work — that long, hard painstaking work has culminated today,” Ellison said, adding that while he wouldn’t call today’s verdict as justice, but accountability, which he described as “the first step toward justice.”

Wayne County Executive Warren Evans called the verdict a turning point. “The conviction of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd is, I hope, a turning point for our country and for policing in our country. As both a career law enforcement officer and a Black man, the video of the killing of George Floyd was difficult to watch. It was even more painful to witness people claim that what we all saw didn’t really happen. The jury today made clear with this verdict that this was exactly what we knew it was. “George Floyd was murdered. George Floyd did not deserve to die that day.

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