Last week, we had the opportunity to attend the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (ACS) National Convention in Washington, D.C. In addition to hearing from Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren, we had the chance to meet with some of the 1,000 amazing lawyers, renowned legal professors, and truly bright law students attending the convention.
One highly relevant panel was a training session offered through the Voting Rights Institute, a project spearheaded by ACS, Georgetown University, and the Campaign Legal Center that is designed to prepare the next generation of voting rights advocates. The panel examined recent U.S. Supreme Court redistricting cases and the barriers to voting caused by the removal of a key portion of the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
This portion of the VRA called for states with a history of voter discrimination to obtain preclearance from the Department of Justice when they wished to change their voting laws. The preclearance requirement was under Section 5 of the VRA, but was gutted by SCOTUS in Shelby County v. Holder in 2013. One of the panelists noted that the 2016 election would be the first general election without Section 5 of the VRA, and several panelists warned that the removal of Section 5 would likely attribute to an increase in voter confusion, voter intimidation, and poll workers having cumbersome new rules to follow.
“The panelists offered recommendations to the packed room of attendees…register to vote, become poll workers and poll watchers, participate in election protection efforts, and engage in state-level work to make voting easier and more accessible. “
The panelists offered recommendations to the packed room of attendees that they should register to vote, become poll workers and poll watchers, participate in election protection efforts, and engage in state-level work to make voting easier and more accessible. Resources can be found on the website, www.votingrightsinstitute.org.
The convention was marked with numerous breakout panel discussions featuring top legal academics, judges, and attorneys who shared their expertise on a variety of law and policy issues. The topics ranged from the First Amendment rights to sentencing guidelines in an era demanding criminal justice reform. ACS also held plenary panels featuring rock stars of the legal world who discussed salient issues such as the future of the Supreme Court after the death of Justice Scalia, and the unprecedented obstruction in the Senate against President Obama’s nominee to fill the late Justice’s seat.
Thursday’s welcome dinner featured Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren. Vice President Biden was soft-spoken and gracious. He thanked the audience, composed of lawyers and future lawyers, for dedicating themselves to the cornerstone of this American democracy, the rule of law. Senator Warren was captivating. She stated motivationally that it is the responsibility of every lawyer to fight back against the millionaires and the billionaires who exercise tremendous power in our modern political system. The overarching theme was empowering lawyers and their crucial role—in light of the current political climate—to restore voter’s confidence in the judiciary. During Friday and Saturday, conference attendees were treated to additional outstanding speeches given by Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, White House Counsel Neil Eggleston, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards.
In short, the ACS National Convention, which celebrated the organization’s 15th anniversary of dedicated service to the progressive legal movement, left us feeling uplifted and energized. We finished the convention with a greater understanding of the challenges we face as a country—especially in the area of voting rights—but hopeful and excited about the future.
Julia Burzynski is a legislative intern and Sarah Schwartz is a legal intern with Project Vote for the summer of 2016.