The Civil War ended 160 years ago. The racist Jim Crow laws of the post-Civil War era were outlawed in the 1960s. It is time for the United States to uphold the words of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution: all Americans are equal and have the constitutional right to be treated equally. Discrimination against certain groups to achieve some platonic vision of equality is unconstitutional.
This truth bears observation. Last week, the Supreme Court announced that it would consider whether racially motivated gerrymandering under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 “violates the Constitution.” Section 2 generally prohibits race-based discrimination in voting laws and practices. In redistricting cases, the law has been used to prevent racial gerrymandering that would unfairly dilute the voting power of racial and ethnic minority voters. States across the country routinely seek to comply with Section 2 by drawing congressional districts where minority voters have a legitimate opportunity to elect their chosen candidate.
