Politics
NAACP convention: Focusing on voter participation
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) says its newest battle is really an old one.
This year’s NAACP national convention, which kicks off this weekend in Houston, is focusing on voter participation and the civil rights organization’s efforts to fight what it sees as restrictive voting laws that have been passed by various states the last few years.
(More: NAACP will challenge voter ID laws nationwide)
Between 6,000 and 7,000 members are expected to attend the group’s 103rd convention. Vice President Joe Biden, Attorney General Eric Holder and Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, are among the scheduled speakers.
The theme of the convention, which starts Saturday and runs through July 12, is “NAACP: Your Power, Your Decision – Vote.” NAACP officials said their main priority this year is making sure that everyone, regardless of race, creed or economic status, will have the right to vote during this fall’s elections.
Since 2010, at least 10 states, including Texas, have passed laws requiring people to show a government-issued photo identification card when they go to the polls.
Supporters of such laws have said showing an ID will prevent voter fraud. But opponents say requiring an ID could suppress voter turnout among poor, elderly and minority voters who are less likely to have a driver’s license or passport.
Leon Russell, vice chairman of the NAACP’s national board of directors, compared the recent voting laws to poll taxes or literacy tests from the 19th century that disenfranchised black voters.
