Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC Condemns the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling that Threatens the Voting Rights Act
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Washington, D.C. — November 21, 2023 — In a 2-1 decision of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, a panel of judges determined that private plaintiffs – such as private citizens and civil rights groups – no longer have the right to bring lawsuits under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA), which prohibits racial discrimination in voting. The ruling, which holds legal authority in the states of Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, marks a dramatic rollback of the enforcement of the landmark civil rights law.
In reaction to this decision, John C. Yang, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC issues a statement:
“This decision to gut Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by a conservatively dominated court is solely designed to discriminate against communities of color, including Asian Americans, and to remove power from our people.
Now, the citizens of seven states — many of whom have significant and growing Asian American communities — are left with no individual recourse to challenge the discriminatory practices aimed at diminishing their voting power during a time when those who want to block progress and turn the clock backwards have continually tried to limit the federal government’s ability to enforce voting rights laws. This decision to eliminate the ability of private citizens and organizations to challenge these laws and practices effectively can leave marginalized communities with no ability to protect their fundamental right to vote.
For decades, civil rights organizations like Advancing Justice – AAJC have joined together or filed individually to protect our communities from intentional discrimination in voting. This extreme decision threatens to upend decades of legal precedent and attempts to further erode the protections of the VRA.
It follows a decade in which the courts have weakened many protections of the Voting Rights Act and comes at a time when the voting rights of communities of color are under attack without the protection of preclearance.
Congress needs to pass legislation that fully restores and modernizes the VRA. Until then, we call upon the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the 8th Circuit Court decision and uphold this crucial part of the Voting Rights Act.”