The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Anushka Sarkar, press@standupamerica.com

Senate Democrats Must Pass John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act--By Whatever Means Necessary

Senate Judiciary Committee to Hold Hearing on Bill Today, Following Reintroduction in Senate

WASHINGTON
Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, critical legislation aimed at strengthening voting rights protections and combating future racist voter suppression efforts like those sweeping state legislatures across the country this year. The legislation, which passed the House in late August, is supported by a bipartisan majority of Americans who also support eliminating the filibuster to pass the bill.
Stand Up America Founder & President Sean Eldridge commented:
"We are at a crossroads for American democracy. Republicans across the country are trying to roll back decades of hard-earned progress in the fight to protect access to the ballot box for all Americans. We cannot let that happen. Far too many Americans have given their blood, their sweat, and even their lives to protect the precious right to vote. Senate Democrats must take up the mantle and pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act--by whatever means necessary.
"The stakes are clear: access to the ballot box for millions of Americans is at risk. Since the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act, millions of Americans have been purged from the voter rolls and thousands of voting locations across the country have been closed. This year alone, 19 states passed 33 laws to make it more difficult for eligible Americans to access the ballot box.
"Democrats cannot allow the Senate minority to once again use the racist Jim Crow filibuster to block access to the ballot box for Black and brown Americans. The only way to protect the freedom to vote and our democracy is to reform the filibuster, and there's no time to lose."

Stand Up America is a progressive advocacy organization with over two million community members across the country. Focused on grassroots advocacy to strengthen our democracy and oppose Trump's corrupt agenda, Stand Up America has driven over 600,000 phone calls to Congress and mobilized tens of thousands of protestors across the country.