The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is hemorrhaging. First, the knife to its gut with the Shelby County v. Holder ruling in 2013. Then came the machete to the legs with Louisiana v. Callais in 2026. The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act has been languishing in Congress for over five years. So much for honoring the legacy and sacrifice of a civil rights icon. This country can eliminate the facade of support for voting rights by ending all future legislation aimed at protecting and enhancing voting.

The 15th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gave Black men the right to vote. Fifty years later, Black women got the right to vote, along with all women citizens, with the passage of the 19th Amendment. If local, state, and federal governments had done their due diligence to enforce these Constitutional amendments, there would be no need for the VRA of 1965. In 2026, Black voters are still being singled out to jump through hoops to vote.

The 1965 Voting Rights Act was mainly to protect the voting rights of Black folks. The crown jewel of the Civil Rights Movement called for reauthorization of certain sections, initially every five years. This opened up the door to partisan politricking. As the nation moved to the right, the erosion of the once-potent act has left the VRA weak and unprotected. In the current racist political climate and with MAGA at the helm, Black folks seem to be one legislative stroke away from being full-fledged citizens.

The John Lewis Act seeks to restore key sections of the 1965 act and provide additional protections. One of the main reasons the Republicans in the Senate refused to pass the Lewis Act is that it allegedly gave the federal government too much authority over state election laws. It also asserts that existing laws already prohibit racial discrimination in voting, so there is no need for another law. This assertion is exactly what I’m underscoring: there are laws on top of laws, and none are being seriously enforced.

That part about the feds having “too much authority over state election laws” illuminates the shameless games the MAGA monsters are playing. The tyrannical head of their bullying club has attempted to use his executive power to suppress the vote and rig elections. The MAGA monsters have aimed their arsenal at unwilling local, county, and state officials. Trump and his cronies are wasting time and our money challenging existing processes and laws. They are being aided and abetted by GOP electioneers, state attorneys general, and the highest court in the land. I would call this too much authority. I would call this federal overreach. I would say this is playing games with our rights.

The MAGA tactics of creating confusion and fear have been unleashed with a fury. Obstacles have been unnecessarily created for voters, from making mail-in voting more difficult to inventing gerrymandered maps. As for fomenting fear, threats to send ICE or the National Guard to polling sites are designed to make citizens think twice about getting out to vote.

If Blacks, Latinas, and their allies are going to be in an endless fight for the right to vote, I propose that fight be at the constitutional level. If you combine Amendments 15 and 19, they prohibit the federal government and states from denying any citizen the right to vote based on race, color, or sex. Simply, all citizens have the right to vote.

The defenders of democracy must acknowledge that the judicial and legislative branches have fallen under the MAGA spell. The deliberate attacks on voting rights will not end with the midterm elections in November. But we can start a national conversation on voting rights now that educates a nation about the sanctity of the vote and rejects the notion of voting as a perpetual distraction. This is what democracy looks like.