On May 15, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of the invalidation of North Carolina’s 2013 voting regulations, mainly on procedural grounds as opposed to the case’s merit. Still, super-liberals, particularly the Charlotte Observer Editorial Board, have been doing happy dances on their desks. Those that oppose a requirement to show a valid picture ID to cast a vote universally claim that doing so is racist, as it is an open attempt to keep black people from voting. They also claim that it is xenophobic, because it would keep illegal immigrants from voting, who vote about 80% Democrat (although why you would want to allow non-citizens to vote will never make sense).
The Observer editorial said, “The 2013 NC law sought to suppress the black vote in five ways: a strict voter ID provision; eliminating same-day registration and pre-registration of teenagers; a cut to early voting days, and a ban on provisional ballots.”
There’s one problem: Little evidence exists that these five things are inherently suppressive to black people. I’ll explain it as thoroughly as I can.
1) ID provision – The state of NC, and just about every other state that I’m aware of, requires you to present a photo ID to drive a vehicle, purchase alcohol and tobacco, obtain certain prescription drugs, enter certain entertainment establishments (nightclubs), and a whole host of other routine, day-to-day activities. Very little opposition to photo IDs for these activities. If requiring a photo ID to vote is a way to keep black people from voting, why isn’t requiring an ID an attempt to keep black people from driving? NC also requires a photo ID to purchase Sudafed and other OTC medicines because they have been shown to be key ingredients to making meth (a dumb rule, but that’s another sermon for another day). If requiring an ID to vote is a way to keep black people from voting, why isn’t requiring an ID a way to keep black people sick? The answer to all these questions is obvious – because requiring an ID is no more inherently oppressive to 1 person than it is another.
2) Eliminating same-day registration – It’s pretty much the same as item 1. You can register to vote online, and there is no limits on access to the internet on anyone. When you go to get that photo ID that blacks have the same access to as any other race, you can register to vote when you’re at the DMV office. There is one, and ONLY one, reason you don’t register to vote until you go to vote, and that is you are too lazy to register a month ahead of time. That applies to everyone, not just 1 race.
3) Pre-registration of teenagers – I’ll admit to being ignorant on the reasoning behind this one. The only situation I can think of where this applies is if the teenager doesn’t turn 18 until the registration deadline has passed. In that case, I would ask if there is any study that shows that there are more black teenagers that fall victim to this circumstance than whites, Latinos, Asians or anyone else? That’s the only way I can conceive of this being a suppression of blacks.
4) A cut to early voting days – This is where I stand with the Democrats, but not on racial grounds. Fewer early voting days and fewer early voting sites, is idiotic no matter what color you are. I literally cannot remember the last time I voted on election day. I always vote early. The line is shorter and I can choose a time where I won’t miss work. The NC Republicans spit out some drivel about reducing opportunities for voting fraud and cutting costs, but it’s just plain stupid. If you want more people to vote (I think everyone does), make days & times to vote more accessible, not less. But again, this is repressive to everyone, not just black folks.
5) Ban on provisional ballots – This is another area I’m short on knowledge. I’ll have to search to see if there is evidence that more black people use provisional ballots than others, which is the only way this would be a black oppression issue. Not knowing any better, I’ll just leave this one be.
Looking at the big picture, I see precious little to persuade anyone that this law prevents black people from voting in larger measure than it would for other ethnicities. The biggest things race pushers cite as evidence of black voter suppression are the photo ID requirement, elimination of same-day registration and early voting days cut. There is no excuse for anyone not having a photo ID. Everyone can go to the DMV. If you can’t drive, as I can’t, you can still get to the DMV with help from friends, public transport, Uber, or even a political party office – the staffers will gladly pick you up in exchange for a pledge to vote for their party. One editorial from the Democrat Party shills at the Observer Editorial Board declared that there is a large contingent of people that attend primarily black churches who go in groups to vote after church, and without early voting on Sundays, many of these people would have no other opportunity to vote. That’s very hard to swallow. All of the aforementioned ways of getting to the DMV apply to getting to an early voting place during the week or on Saturdays. As I said before, it’s stupid to reduce early voting rather than expand it, but that’s to the detriment of all races, not just one.
Here’s the bottom line: If you are sitting at home on election day because you couldn’t get a picture ID and/or to a voting booth, it’s because of your own lack of knowledge and effort. The people that tell you that getting a photo ID is an effort to keep you from voting are really telling you that you are either too lazy or too stupid to get one.
If I was a black man, I would be very insulted.
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