"We Won't Be Moved": Voting Rights Act Under Attack as Activists Rally Outside Supreme Court

Tensions were high outside the supreme court on Wednesday as hundreds of activists gathered to protest a case that could gut the Voting Rights Act, a landmark law that has protected Black voters for decades. The protesters, most of whom were Black, held signs and chanted slogans, drawing attention to the legacy of civil rights giants like Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King, and John Lewis, whose death five years ago was marked by a photo on one protester's sign.

Key Takeaways:

• The case involves a challenge to section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits racial discrimination in voting.
• Protesters like Wanda Mosley, who traveled from Atlanta, saw the case as an attack on the legacy of civil rights leaders and a threat to Black voters' rights.
• Speakers invoked the movement's heroes, including King, Lewis, and Marshall, in framing the legal fight as the latest chapter in a long, generational struggle for civil rights.
• Activists carried signs referencing current Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, a conservative and the first African American to serve on the court.
• Cliff Albright, a co-founder of Black Voters Matter, drew on Lewis's optimistic spirit in urging the crowd to believe in their power to move the court.

Statistics:

• 55-year-old Wanda Mosley made the trip from Atlanta to protest the case.
• Hundreds of activists gathered outside the supreme court on Wednesday.
• The Voting Rights Act has been in effect for over 50 years.
• Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act prohibits racial discrimination in voting.
• 2 speakers, Janai Nelson and Terri Sewell, referenced John Lewis's message of hope and perseverance.

Sources:

• Associated Press (Photographer: Cliff Owen)
• Black Voters Matter (Founder: Cliff Albright)
• NAACP Legal Defense Fund (President: Janai Nelson)