Throughout the 1960s, progress in terms of racial equality became evident as the national government began to respond to protests held by groups of African Americans seeking equal rights. Since the ratification of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 signaled significant development, members of society often came to the conclusion that racial equality had been achieved. However, in reality, society was far from establishing this equality. Though, in writing, discrimination against individuals based on color could no longer take place, states still found ways to subtly put specific groups at a disadvantage. Even today, over half a century later, states continue to treat different groups of individuals unequally based on …show more content…
This act led to the elimination of first-generation barriers, including poll taxes and literacy tests, giving African Americans an equal opportunity to vote. In the article, “The Voting Rights Act: A Brief History,” Chandler Davidson explains that, “black voter registration increased from 6.7 percent before the act to 59.8 in 1967,” and in the seven states that the act initially targeted due to their history of racial discrimination in voting practices, “black registration increased from 29.3 percent in March 1965 to 56.6 percent in 1971-72” (Davidson 45). As a result of ratifying the Voting Rights Act, and specifically Section 4, the amount of African Americans exercising their right to vote increased significantly. Section 4 granted the federal government power to oversee the states’ actions in terms of suffrage; therefore, states could not easily pass laws that disenfranchised African Americans and other minorities. By implementing Section 4, the voting process became significantly more accessible for African Americans, and the amount of votes cast by African Americans increased greatly, thus proving that Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act was essential for …show more content…
In Shelby v. Holder, the Supreme Court ruled Section 4 unconstitutional, claiming that recent data supported the idea that racial discrimination was no longer an issue in terms of voting, and therefore, Section 4 was irrelevant to the current circumstances of the nation. Though the justices that voted in favor of this act believe that states have made progress and no longer intend to discriminate based on race, several states with a history of discriminating against certain groups have already reverted to implementing second-generation barriers. Second-generation barriers, such as voter identification laws, primarily deter minorities from exercising their right to vote. Since many minorities lack the documents required to obtain IDs, do not have access to transportation, or cannot afford to dedicate an entire day toward obtaining an ID, they are essentially pushed into sacrificing their right to vote. Without Section 4, states no longer need federal approval for passing laws like these regarding suffrage; as a result, after the elimination of this section, Texas announced that “a voter identification law that had been blocked would go into effect immediately” (Liptak 2). Although the federal government initially prevented Texas from passing this law,