Voter suppression has a long and sordid history in the U.S. A favorite tactic of the Republican Party its targets have been African Americans, Latinos and young people. Beginning almost immediately after the winning of the franchise by former bondsmen during Reconstruction, voter suppression has taken various forms including poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses to the more methods of voter ID laws, gerrymandering and direct voter intimidation. This webinar will explore the origins of voter suppression, federal remedies and the need for ongoing reforms including possible radical measures.
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Joelle Fishman chairs the Connecticut Communist Party USA. She is a Commissioner on the City of New Haven Peace Commission, serves on the executive board of the Alliance of Retired Americans in Connecticut and is an active member of many economic rights and social justice organizations. She was a candidate for Congress from 1973 to 1982, maintaining minor-party ballot status for the Communist Party in Connecticut's Third Congressional District. As chair of the CPUSA Political Action Commission, she has played an active role in the broad labor and people's alliance that defeated the ultra-right in the 2008 elections and continues to mobilize for health care, worker rights and peace.
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