US Opinion and Commentary

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Democracy in the Crosshairs

Posted April 19th, 2016 at 10:54 am (UTC-4)
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Modern communications, higher voter education and the power of the internet are colliding with outdated methods of voting and participation to produce a system badly in need of reform. The result is a democracy that is veering off course, increasingly reflecting the will of powerful activist groups and the political extremes, and not of the […]

The Right to Vote

Posted March 28th, 2016 at 3:21 pm (UTC-4)
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This November will be the first presidential election since a 2013 decision by the Supreme Court striking down a key part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. As a result, new voting restrictions are in place in 16 states across America. The impact of that ruling (a 5 to 4 decision and highly controversial) has already been felt. Recently, thousands stood in line for hours (after polls closed) waiting to cast their primary ballots in Utah, Arizona, and Idaho. Some experts warn this is a sign of what’s to come in the general election and beyond: roadblocks to voting that disproportionately affect minorities and the most vulnerable American voters. The anxiety around access and ease of casting a vote, a cornerstone issue of the civil rights movement of the 1960s, has grown palpably. And with this election season’s combustible atmosphere and unpredictable twists and turns, there are fears that holes are being poked in the historic 1965 affirmation of all Americans right to participate in the nation’s voting system.