[{"command":"settings","settings":{"pluralDelimiter":"\u0003","suppressDeprecationErrors":true,"ajaxPageState":{"libraries":"eJwry0wtL9YvA5F6iVmJFTplSAK5-SmlOakA-D8NyQ","theme":"hrw_design","theme_token":null},"ajaxTrustedUrl":[],"views":{"ajax_path":"\/views\/ajax","ajaxViews":{"views_dom_id:blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__375183__en":{"view_name":"blog_live_feed","view_display_id":"blog_body_block","view_args":"375183","view_path":"\/blog\/content\/375183","view_base_path":null,"view_dom_id":"blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__375183__en","pager_element":0}}},"csp":{"nonce":"aJNKbjcQwU5qDyx4iyJZow"},"user":{"uid":0,"permissionsHash":"bc8921424f39d39c64af84232b603fadae46f840a8176c1b2436a5ee00791ac5"}},"merge":true},{"command":"add_css","data":[{"rel":"stylesheet","media":"all","href":"\/sites\/default\/files\/css\/css_AJtnZDRKiPcDwZRF9CRxhLi7MMNATzBRLvIhNfcurrs.css?delta=0\u0026language=en\u0026theme=hrw_design\u0026include=eJxLzi9K1U8pKi1IzNFLzEqs0CnLTC0v1geTern5KaU5qQDy8w2e"}]},{"command":"add_js","selector":"body","data":[{"src":"\/sites\/default\/files\/js\/js_VAWKYxPX4vFoyXs0iEPUrnc99CjyNLIu_pZawjEz9i8.js?scope=footer\u0026delta=0\u0026language=en\u0026theme=hrw_design\u0026include=eJwry0wtL9YvA5F6iVmJFQA22wZe"}]},{"command":"insert","method":"replaceWith","selector":".js-view-dom-id-blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__375183__en","data":"\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-view-dom-id-blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__375183__en\u0022\u003E\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n\n \u003Cdiv\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Cdiv class=\u0022blog-block__content__description rich-text pt-6 mb:pt-10 mx-auto\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cdiv class=\u0022embed\u0022 data-type=\u0022image\u0022\u003EFollowing the turbulent \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/content\/340994\u0022\u003Eelections in Wisconsin\u003C\/a\u003E earlier this month, there have been growing concerns that many US voters will struggle to cast their ballots in November due to targeted attempts to curtail their voting rights during the pandemic. Nicole Austin-Hillery, head of the US Program at Human Rights Watch, is leveraging her experience as a voting rights expert to offer a warning as well as a path forward. In an \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2020\/04\/26\/opinions\/vote-rights-pandemic-covid-19-austin-hillery\/index.html\u0022\u003Eop-ed for CNN.com\u003C\/a\u003E on Sunday, she discusses the need to remove barriers to the ballot box before Election Day and highlights strategies for securing \u201cthe fate of our right to vote.\u201d\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n\u003Cdiv class=\u0022embed\u0022 data-type=\u0022image\u0022\u003E\n\t\u003Cp\u003EAustin-Hillery offers a reminder that the recent rollbacks, although alarming, are part of a larger trend that came to life in the past decade:\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\t\u003Cp style=\u0022margin-left:.5in;\u0022\u003EUnfortunately, voter suppression has threatened that right for thousands of historically disfranchised Americans with tactical precision since the US Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965 in a 2013\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/12pdf\/12-96_6k47.pdf\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Edecision\u003C\/a\u003E, Shelby County v. Holder, which found unconstitutional sections of the act that required states with long histories of discriminatory voting practices to get Justice Department approval before changing voting laws.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\t\u003Cp style=\u0022margin-left:.5in;\u0022\u003ESince that decision, numerous states have changed laws to require voters to show photo IDs, have purged their voter rolls, or have shortened or ended early voting. Court challenges in\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.caller.com\/story\/news\/texasregion\/2020\/03\/05\/texas-voter-suppression-lawsuit-legal-fight-2020-election\/4794587002\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ETexas\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.charlotteobserver.com\/news\/politics-government\/article240387671.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ENorth Carolina\u003C\/a\u003E and other states have shown that these changes make it harder for black, Latino, poor and older communities to vote.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\t\u003Cp\u003EAustin-Hillery came to Human Rights Watch as a civil rights leader leader who\u0027d worked for many years to address disenfranchisement. \u201cI spent more than a decade as a voting rights advocate working with Congress to ensure that the rights of all voters are protected, and with legal and community partners around the country to help ensure access to free and fair elections,\u201d she wrote on Sunday. Based on her experience fighting for voting rights, Austin-Hillery writes that\u0026nbsp;\u201cthe scale of the more recent changes, coupled with concerns that suppression will rise in the age of Covid-19\u201d requires a multifaceted approach rather than a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/politics\/elections\/2020\/04\/20\/naacp-others-person-voting-still-needed-during-coronavirus-pandemic\/5144452002\/\u0022\u003Esingle policy reform\u003C\/a\u003E such as vote-by-mail. \u201cIt has to entail a full-fledged, comprehensive plan to stamp out suppression at every turn.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\t\u003Cp\u003EThe strategies Austin-Hillery supports for expanding access to the ballot box include, among other efforts, increasing states\u2019 \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/04\/11\/us\/coronavirus-voting-by-mail-elections.html\u0022\u003Ecapacity for mail-in voting\u003C\/a\u003E, making sure \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.americanprogress.org\/issues\/democracy\/news\/2020\/04\/20\/483438\/expanding-vote-mail-states-must-maintain-person-voting-options-coronavirus-pandemic\/\u0022\u003Ein-person voting\u003C\/a\u003E is safe, expanding the window for early voting, investing in widespread voter education,\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/news\/2020\/04\/27\/us-florida-needs-protect-voting-rights-all\u0022\u003Eeliminating felony disenfranchisement\u003C\/a\u003E, and recognizing the electoral\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/news\/2019\/09\/09\/disability-rights-should-be-central-us-presidential-race\u0022\u003Erights of people with disabilities\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\t\u003Cp\u003ERead Austin-Hillery\u2019s full op-ed on \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2020\/04\/26\/opinions\/vote-rights-pandemic-covid-19-austin-hillery\/index.html\u0022\u003ECNN.com\u003C\/a\u003E, and continue following Human Rights Watch for more coverage of the 2020 US elections.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n\u003C\/div\u003E\n","settings":null},{"command":"insert","method":"prepend","selector":".js-view-dom-id-blog_live_feed__blog_body_block__375183__en","data":"","settings":null}]