WASHINGTON - August 24 - A report that documents recent examples of voter intimidation and suppression strategies will be released on Wednesday at a press conference by the report’s co-publishers, People For the American Way Foundation and the NAACP. The Long Shadow of Jim Crow: Voter Intimidation and Suppression in America makes clear that the vestiges of voter intimidation, oppression and suppression were not swept away by the Voting Rights Act or by subsequent efforts to enforce it.

What: Press conference on Voter Intimidation & Suppression

Who: Ralph G. Neas, president, People For the American Way Foundation

Julian Bond, chair, NAACP

When: Wednesday, August 25, 10:00 a.m.

Where: National Press Club, West Room

“There is more than one way to try to steal an election, and more than one way to deprive people of their right to vote,” said People For the American Way Foundation President Ralph G. Neas. “Although voter intimidation has not historically been confined to a single political party, we are increasingly concerned about recent incidents indicating that Republican officials may be planning to challenge voters this year based on race.”

“Minority voters bear the brunt of every form of disenfranchisement, including pernicious efforts to keep them away from the polls,” said Julian Bond, NAACP Board Chairman. “This report is a reminder that we cannot relax our vigilance against direct assaults on voters’ rights.”

PFAWF and the NAACP are among more than 60 civil rights and other public interest organizations carrying out the efforts of the nonpartisan Election Protection coalition across the country this fall, including the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, America’s Families United’s Voter Protection Project, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, the Advancement Project, and the League of United Latin American Citizens. Election Protection is designed to identify potential problems, educate voters about their rights, monitor polling places in areas at high risk of disenfranchisement, and provide advice and legal assistance to voters through a toll-free Election Protection Hotline (1-866-OUR-VOTE). The nonpartisan Election Protection coalition will be on the ground in more than 3,500 African American and Latino precincts in at least 17 states and will mobilize 25,000 volunteers, including 5,000 lawyers.

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