Exhibit Traces Voting Rights Act History
Martin Luther King Jr. Center Exhibit Traces Voting Rights Act History
Martin Luther King Jr. Center Exhibit Traces Voting Rights Act History
ATLANTA Aug 4, 2005 — From a bloody attack on an Alabama bridge to a bill-signing ceremony in the White House, a new exhibit traces the history of the federal Voting Rights Act on the eve of its 40th anniversary.
Organizers of the free exhibit, which opens Thursday at the Martin Luther King Jr. historic site, say they hope to show both the difficult struggle to pass the law and the lasting effects it has had.
"What we're really hoping people come out with is not just that it was a struggle, but that overall, it was a successful struggle," said Dean Rowley, co-curator of the exhibit, "Of Ballots Uncast: The African American Struggle for the Right to Vote".
The act, signed by President Lyndon Johnson on Aug. 6, 1965, officially guaranteed the right to vote to every American, regardless of race. Its basic tenets are permanent, but certain provisions must be renewed by Congress by 2007.
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http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1007202~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Look how far we've come. Now all Democrats aren't getting their votes counted, thanks to Republican control of our vote-counting.
What a shame if it is finally going to all be in vain forever. What a shame.