Voting rights, race and the Deep South’s unfinished history
Democracy weakens when citizens no longer believe institutions see them equally, hear them equally or protect them fairly.
Democracies rarely break all at once. They weaken when trust slowly disappears.
In this week’s “This Matters,” Bill Britt examines the growing outrage many Black Americans feel as courts continue narrowing voting protections across the South. In Alabama and throughout the Deep South, voting rights were never theoretical. They were fought for in the streets, in courtrooms, and on bridges stained by violence and sacrifice.
The deeper danger extends far beyond redistricting maps or legal arguments. Democracies become unstable when large groups of citizens begin believing the system no longer sees them equally, hears them equally or protects them equally.
History does not disappear simply because society declares itself colorblind. And when public trust erodes, the consequences eventually reach everyone.
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