OPINION: Protect and defend the right to vote
| November 24, 2023 1:00 AM
Voting is one of the few times in American society where we are all equal. Each of us has one vote to cast — no matter our race, gender, neighborhood, profession, or wealth. Votes are cast by Idahoans in communities throughout the state. They are also cast by Idahoans serving in the military who are living across the country and throughout the world. All of these voters deserve to have their votes count.
The principle of “one person, one vote” is central to our American system of government. However, it has not always been that way. It took the 15th Amendment in 1870 to give Black men the right to vote. Idaho led the way as the fourth state to give women the right to vote in 1896, 24 years ahead of the 19th Amendment. For decades, poll taxes and literacy tests were selectively used by white legislators in southern states to obstruct Black voters and embed Jim Crow segregation. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibited racial discrimination. While we don’t always live up to the ideals embedded in our Constitution, the good news is that over the last 236 years, we Americans have made great strides toward achieving the promise of “a more perfect Union.”
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