ColorOfChange.org changing the color of democracy

In 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, drawing attention to the plight of Black voters in the South. The non-violent resistors who marched that day were met with violent and angry opposition from state troopers who attacked the peaceful protestors with clubs and tear gas as white onlookers cheered. The event came to be known as "Bloody Sunday" and would inspire President Lyndon B. Johnson to sign the Voting Rights Act later that year.

Yesterday, the legislative battle to protect voting rights returned to Alabama as the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the landmark case, Shelby County vs. Holder.

Considered by many to be "the heart" of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Section 5 provides key protections to minority voters. This Black History Month, ColorOfChange is building a community of knowledge around the Shelby County vs. Holder Case Among other things, the landmark case contests the necessity of Section 5, and will be brought before SCOTUS at the end of the month.

Throughout the 2012 Presidential election, our members fought against discriminatory voter ID laws and voter intimidation. While many of the states enacting these laws were not covered by Section 5, the work it took to push back against threats to voters — particularly voters of color — speaks to the continued need for a legal shield against voter discrimination.

This Black History Month, ColorofChange has decided to focus our attention on one of the most significant Supreme Court cases in recent history: Shelby County, Alabama vs. Holder. At the end of this month, SCOTUS will hear oral arguments in the case that seeks to invalidate Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

The Voting Rights Act is arguably the most important legislative outcome of the Civil Rights Movement and Section 5 of the act, which provides key protections to minority voters, is widely held up as its key provision. This month, we will be discussing the significance and context of the Shelby County case. We know these legislative victories were hard won battles, but if the 2012 election taught us anything, it was that we must remain vigilant when it comes to voting rights in the Black community.

Help us build an informed and powerful community around this case. 

This February we've celebrated Black History Month by highlighting some of ColorOfChange's most dynamic campaigns -- moments that captured national attention and spoke directly to the Black experience in America. We recalled our founding moment in the aftermath of Katrina, the multidimensional movement to free the Jena Six, and the effort to save Troy Davis' life and challenge our broken criminal justice system.

Let us know in the comments section what you thought of our Black History Month series. And if you aren't already a member, please join us here.

Troy Davis captured our hearts and minds. Once just one of the more than 1,300 Black people on death row, Davis' case had drawn both grassroots support and the attention of noted political and religious leaders in recent years because of the many indications that Davis may well have been innocent. ColorOfChange members were outraged by Davis' situation and heartbroken when we were unable to help save his life. But his case remains a source of motivation and inspiration as the movement to eradicate racial bias in the criminal justice system continues.

Most of us had never heard of Jena, Louisiana. But in 2006, six teenage boys were arrested and the small town of 4,000 would soon be thrust into the national spotlight as a prime example of 21st century Jim Crow justice.

It all started at Jena High School when a Black student sat under a tree in the courtyard that had come to be known as for White students only. When students returned to school the next day, they found three nooses hanging from the same tree. The incidents that followed would lead to six Black boys facing decades in prison and the launch of one of the most dynamic ColorOfChange campaigns to date.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf Coast in August and September of 2005, upending the lives of 1.5 million people and putting Black folks' lack of political and social power front and center for all the world to see.

The storms magnified racial disparities in the U.S., and no place demonstrated this more clearly than New Orleans, where 80% of the city was submerged after Katrina. Out of this devastation, ColorOfChange was born.

This month the ColorofChange blog will feature some key events in contemporary Black history, almost all of which coincide with campaigns the organization has taken on. We'll be offering you a catalogue of 21st century Black American history and showcasing the stories at the center of our work.

Each event we'll highlight lifts up the power that you -- our members -- have flexed while shaping history for all Black Americans and our allies. This Black History Month we're celebrating what our community has done to create a powerful online lobby that didn't exist prior to the devastating hurricane that hit the Gulf Coast just over six years ago.