Category Archives: Voting Rights Act

Advice to a (small ‘d’) democrat

Posted on October 4, 2020 by Bennett Minton

A friend asks for facts about Joe Biden, without mentioning Donald Trump, to help her decide. Not comprehensive, but this is what I wrote her after spending 15 minutes on the question (and a few more refining for this post): … Continue reading →

Posted in election campaign, Joe Biden, presidential election 2020, Uncategorized, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Virginia’s high court silently joins gerrymandering conversation

Posted on March 2, 2018 by Bennett Minton

Gerrymandering has broken through the din of partisan grenade-throwing to become a top-tier issue of voter concern across the political spectrum. If we cannot fix this party- and incumbent-protection racket, We the People are coming to understand, we will cease … Continue reading →

Posted in gerrymandering, Supreme Court, U.S. Constitution, Virginia legislature, Voting, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

A 100-days report card

Posted on April 29, 2017 by Bennett Minton

Any list of President Trump’s accomplishments will reflect the biases of its creator. Justice/Immigration/Civil Rights Trump signed two executive orders banning immigrants from seven, and then six, countries. The January order was halted by a federal appeals court. The March … Continue reading →

Posted in civil rights, climate change, Congress, environment, LGBT rights, Uncategorized, Voting Rights Act | Tagged | 2 Comments

The Electoral College: Will no one rid us of this meddlesome relic?

Posted on December 19, 2016 by Bennett Minton

On the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December, the Electoral College is expected to demonstrate not only its uselessness but its destructiveness by choosing for president a candidate who lost the national popular vote by more than 2 … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral College, Supreme Court, U.S. Constitution, Voting, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Electoral College: Will no one rid us of this meddlesome relic?

Jim Crow makes a last stand in the Old Dominion

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Bennett Minton

“Don’t boo. Vote.” – President Obama at the Democratic Convention The struggle to do just that goes on, as illustrated by three recent court decisions. In two federal cases, appeals courts struck down voter ID laws in Texas and North … Continue reading →

Posted in civil rights, Uncategorized, Virginia legislature, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Jim Crow makes a last stand in the Old Dominion

Donald Trump gives the GOP its comeuppance

Posted on March 3, 2016 by Bennett Minton

Upon signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Bill Moyers related decades later, President Johnson said, “I think we just delivered the South to the Republican Party for a long time to come.” It’s a popular story (though its truth … Continue reading →

Posted in civil rights, election campaign, gerrymandering, Uncategorized, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gerrymandering in Virginia: The legislature gets personal

Posted on August 19, 2015 by Bennett Minton

What happened in the Virginia General Assembly this week is a result of gerrymandering – the political process by which the political parties take care of themselves and ignore their constituents. The events – a state Supreme Court justice and … Continue reading →

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Belief as limitation, on campus and off

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Bennett Minton

When I am not thinking about the next blog, I staff workshops that support people in discovering that all of their experience is narrowed by their beliefs. The simplest example of this phenomena is that a little while ago, we … Continue reading →

Posted in education, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Three speeches and a bump on the road to a more perfect union

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Bennett Minton

In our journey toward a more perfect union, we have witnessed cycles of history since Abraham Lincoln delivered the greatest speech in American history 150 years ago. Two other speeches, 50 years ago this month, complete a cycle of that … Continue reading →

Posted in Abraham Lincoln, U.S. Constitution, Voting Rights Act | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment