The Supreme Court Has Found Its True Enemy: Multiracial Democracy
The Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in Louisiana v. Callais, significantly weakening Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a decision critics say undermines multiracial democracy and Black political representation. Janai Nelson of the Legal Defense Fund, who argued the case, called the ruling a devastating blow to voting rights and a call to action for democracy advocates. The case centered on Louisiana’s congressional map, where Black residents make up 33% of the population but were limited to one of six majority-Black districts.
- ▪The Supreme Court's 6–3 decision in Louisiana v. Callais effectively gutted enforcement mechanisms of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
- ▪Janai Nelson, president and director-counsel of the Legal Defense Fund, argued the case before the Supreme Court on behalf of Louisiana voters.
- ▪Black residents constitute approximately 33% of Louisiana’s population but were represented in only one of six congressional districts under the 2022 map.
- ▪The ruling overturned a lower court decision in which six federal judges had found evidence of racial discrimination in the original map.
- ▪Legal experts, including election law scholar Rick Hasen, have described the decision as one of the most damaging to voting rights in recent history.
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Jurisprudence The Supreme Court Has Found Its True Enemy: Multiracial Democracy By Dahlia Lithwick Follow Dahlia Signed Up For Email Alerts Error Signing Up For Email Alerts Close Enter your email to receive alerts for this author. Thanks for signing up! You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time. You're already subscribed to the aa_Dahlia_Lithwick newsletter. You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time. We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again, or manage all your newsletter subscriptions here . <div class="slate-notification--error"> Please enable javascript to sign up for newsletters. </div> Email address: Sign Up By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms. Sign in or create an account to better manage your email preferences.
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