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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMy letter to Chief Justice John Roberts. His address is enclosed. You should write him too!
Chief Justice John Roberts
Supreme Court of the United States
1 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20543
Dear Chief Justice Roberts,
I am writing in response to the Courts decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which I believe will stand as a definingand deeply troublingmoment in your tenure.
By narrowing the practical reach of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, the Court has made it significantly harder to challenge maps that dilute minority voting power. Requiring proof of intent rather than confronting discriminatory effects does not neutralize injusticeit insulates it. As this Court has demonstrated, history has repeatedly shown that discrimination rarely announces itself openly, and legal standards that depend on proving intent risk rendering civil rights protections hollow.
The purpose of the Voting Rights Act was not to create a race-neutral abstraction, but to remedy specific, well-documented patterns of disenfranchisement. Treating all groups as equally vulnerable to vote dilution disregards the very history the law was designed to confront.
The Court has long claimed to be guided by precedent, restraint, and fidelity to the Constitution. This decision calls those commitments into question. When legal reasoning produces outcomes that predictably and intentionally weaken the political voice of historically marginalized communities, it is reasonable to ask whether the Court is fulfilling its role as a guardian of equal protection.
You are well aware that the legitimacy of the Court rests not only on its authority, but on public confidence that its decisions are grounded in principle rather than outcome-driven reasoning. Decisions like this erode that confidence.
This decision places the Court in the role of validating systemic inequality in American elections. History will remember that.
sinkingfeeling
(57,946 posts)Ninga
(9,027 posts)your next letter. Great job!
Fil1957
(817 posts)of them.
The problem is, he just doesn't give a rat's ass about this country.
And I know he'll probably never read it, and he certainly doesn't care, but that will not stop me from using my voice and pushing back.
popsdenver
(2,515 posts)Obviously.......Roberts, nor any of the other Republican Justices give a crap about anything other than taking care of the Corporations that they serve...............
JustKay
(165 posts)It will not stop me from advocating for social justice. With my last breath!
popsdenver
(2,515 posts)I will also...........
City Lights
(25,997 posts)Martin Eden
(15,826 posts)Roberts and his five accomplices know this. As you noted later in your very well written logical letter, their ruling was driven by outcome.
I have often pondered what future historians will write about this court, this Congress, and this POtuS. My greatest fear is that fascism will prevail, and the true history of these times will be flushed down an Orwellian memory hole.
Seinan Sensei
(1,616 posts)Perfect!
Ill be using this 👍
ihaveaquestion
(4,710 posts)Unfortunately, I'm sure it's nothing he hasn't heard before and isn't likely to make an impression. He and his ilk have canned, and no doubt well-reasoned in his mind, responses to every argument you make. These are not fair-minded people. It's hard for us to imagine that a supreme court judge as affable as Roberts is, would be unreasonable, but he is. There's a barrier in his mind which nothing crosses, which was probably set in childhood by a grandfather or uncle, and which tells him that his people deserve what they have and where they are, and whatever station he rises to in life, he must do his best to protect them and theirs.
perdita9
(1,359 posts)John Roberts will be remembered as an active participant in trying to destroy American democracy
lastlib
(28,497 posts)"That will be YOUR legacy." Let him know HE owns it.
Fantastic as is, though.
It won't penetrate his thick ideological skull, but that isn't your fault, it's his.
mountain grammy
(29,147 posts)but I love your letter and will send something similar myself.. thank you for providing a guide.
I think we're in for some dark times with this court. I'm scared for friends who live on the edge and for all of us.
no_hypocrisy
(55,220 posts)that will have Roberts speak at their commencement.
And if that should fail, I believe the appropriate response of the graduates should be to either stand and turn their backs on Roberts or to just leave when he begins to speak.
vapor2
(4,805 posts)and his legacy will surely suck
70sEraVet
(5,584 posts)It's an excellent letter. But it's GREEN that closes the argument with these 6justices!
suilebhan
(16 posts)You've written an excellent letter, and it's greatly appreciated. I think this court has blundered badly with this new sequel. "Dred Scott 2: Alito Boogaloo."
Joinfortmill
(21,501 posts)FadedMullet
(994 posts)tavernier
(14,492 posts)A letter wont help because he has long been made blind. Im afraid that only our voices and our votes can save us now. And a great deal of prayer.
stage left
(3,335 posts)aggiesal
(10,884 posts)dlk
(13,314 posts)He (and his wife) are too busy lining their pockets.
Ruby the Liberal
(26,693 posts)Thank you for sharing that.
MineralMan
(151,492 posts)Sadly, the odds of them being read by the person addressed are very long indeed. Still, writing it helped you organize our thoughts and share them with us. That's a good thing, no question!