Congress must act quickly to restore the Voting Rights Act that was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in June.
The Supreme Court's decision erased fundamental protections against racial discrimination that have been effective for more than 40 years and opened the floodgate of attacks on voters. Only strong action from Congress can fix the court's mistake.
Several states have already rushed to implement racially discriminatory anti-voter laws, including several states where the League of Women Voters had previously succeeded in blocking voter restrictions in the courts and state legislatures.
The Voting Rights Act remains an essential protection against the thinly veiled discrimination that still threatens Americans' right to vote. David McCumber in his commentary ("Nation desperate for change," Aug. 25) writes: "Several states...have passed voter-ID laws, and limits on polling hours, that can have no other intent than to disenfranchise minorities. Voter fraud? Spare me. It has been repeatedly documented that fraudulent voting is all but nonexistent."
Contact your congressman and tell him or her to repair the Voting Rights Act before any more damage is done. To learn who your congressman is, visit the League of Women Voters of New York State website at http://www.lwvny.org.
Lois Griffin
Albany
President, League of Women Voters of Albany County