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Reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act of 1965 Reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act of 1965 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed the requirement that would-be voters in the United States take literacy tests to qualify to register to vote, and it provided for federal registration of voters -- instead of state or local voter registration which had often been denied to minorities and poor voters -- in areas that had less than 50% of eligible voters registered. The act also provided for DOJ oversight to registration, and the Department's approval for any change in voting law in districts whose populations were at least 5% African- American. The bill was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965. Soon after passage of the Voting Rights Act, federal examiners were conducting voter registration, and black voter registration began a sharp increase. The cumulative effect of the Supreme Court's decisions, Congress' enactment of voting rights legislation, and the ongoing efforts of concerned private citizens and the Department of Justice, has been to restore the right to vote guaranteed by the 14th and 15th Amendments. The Voting Rights Act has been called the single most effective piece of civil rights legislation ever passed by Congress. The Voting Rights Act has been renewed many times and remains in force. It was renewed in 1970 and 1975. In 1982, Congress amended and renewed the Act for another 25 years. Some portions of the Act are up for renewal in 2007 including: • One provision that will be expiring is the federal examiner and observer provisions of the Voting Rights Act, which allow federal employees to observe polling places and vote counting activities and serve to document and deter inappropriate conduct at polling places. Federal observers have been deployed for 39 of the past 40 years in over 1,000 elections to help protect the rights of African-American voters in the Deep South and the rights of minority language speaking voters across the country. • Also expiring are the language assistance provisions of the Voting Rights Act. This is especially important as the numbers of non-English speaking citizens in this country grow at a staggering rate. Language barriers effectively prevent eligible voters from voting and the Voting Rights Act's language assistance provisions requiring bilingual voting assistance for language minority communities in certain jurisdictions are still needed. Position: While the permanent provisions of the VRA do not require legislative reauthorization, the special provisions will expire at the end of the period of years specified by Congress when enacted or renewed. Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. fully supports the reauthorization of those provisions of the Voting Rights Act. As the summer of 2007 approaches, and the time for the Voting Rights Act grows short, we must remember that the Voting Rights Act was not passed to eliminate discriminatory barriers to voting, as they existed in 1965, but also to deter state and local government officials from enacting new, more subtle barriers to voting in the future. The right to vote is most the critical right we hold as Americans. It is preeminent of all other rights and, accordingly, it must be celebrated and protected. The Voting Rights Act has been and must continue to be the guardian of minority voting rights in the country. INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS * 2322-24 NORTH BROAD STREET * PHILADELPHIA, PA 19132-4590 * 215-228-7184 * FAX 215-228-7181 The Grand Chapter TRAINING FOR LEADERSHIP SINCE 1911

Covenant with Black America As we witnessed in the 2004 presidential election, Americans are deeply divided between race, class, gender, political ideology and moral values. A divide so extreme, that in order to bridge it, we must speak openly, freely, without judgment and work together. It is imperative that we take this opportunity to consider the issues of particular interest to African Americans and to establish a national plan of action to address them. No longer can we sit back and expect one political party, one segment of the population or one religious denomination to speak for us or to act on our behalf. It is our responsibility as an entire community to no longer be left behind politically, socially, or economically and to bridge the economic and social divides ourselves, by encouraging a conversation and a commitment that will inevitably benefit all Americans. State of the Black Union 2005: Defining the African American Agenda On Saturday, February 26th, 23 panelists convened at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in the Greater Atlanta area, to begin the conversation on the most important issues that affect Black America. The panels included: Bishop Eddie L. Long, Senior Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Princeton University professor Dr. Cornel West, Patricia A. Ford, Chair-Elect of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, Jehmu Greene, President of Rock the Vote, The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, Dr. Joseph Lowery, Founder and President Emeritus of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Dr. M. Joycelyn Elders, Former US Surgeon General, Reverend Al Sharpton, Angela Glover Blackwell, Founder and CEO of PolicyLink, Attorney and Former Mayor of Detroit Dennis Wayne Archer, Entrepreneur George Fraser, Congressman John Conyers, Jr., Economist Dr. Julianne Malveaux, Senior Political Strategist Donna Brazile, University of Pennsylvania professor Reverend Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, AARP President Marie F. Smith, Civil Rights Attorney Constance L. Rice, Author Keith Boykin, Attorney and Former City Councilman of Newark, New Jersey, Cory A. Booker, Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., Labor Leader William Lucy, AFL-CIO, Bishop Vashti McKenzie of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and Bishop Harry R. Jackson, Jr. Fiery and inspirational, our 4½ hour discussion only scratched the surface of the rough road ahead. Clarification of Intent It is not our intent to define, determine, or prioritize these issues, nor to conclude how they are to be remedied. That's where you come in — Black America