When running the numbers district by district, we get a portrait of how much the regions once covered by the Voting Rights Act have actually changed since 1965.
The Supreme Court often relies on social and historical data in making its judgments and in its latest case, the court did just that. Chief Justice John Roberts has said that 1965 has no bearing on the way people of different races interact politically today–leading the court to believe that Congress needs to make a new coverage formula that is used to determine which states and political subdivisions are subject to the preclearance requirement of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.
If Congress were to do that, what factors about today’s more integrated or very differently segregated communities would it take into account?
On today’s show, we examine the big regions that almost look nothing like they did in 1965, right down to specific counties that are different and exactly how they are different. Additionally, we look to see what places might change even more in the next five to 10 years.
To help walk us through this we welcome Dante Chinni, director of the American Communities project.