Discrimination and the Republicans

article from http://www.theocracywatch.org



The Civil Rights Act, signed into law in 1964, bans discrimination in employment on the basis of race, gender, or religion. The Religious Right disregards the Civil Rights Act through executive orders, legislation, and attempts to actually change the laws. In order to enact his program of Faith Based Initiative, President Bush has been circumventing the Civil Rights Act.

As reported in Church and State, September, 2003:

By a 217-216 vote on July 25, the House passed a bill (H.R.2210,) that permits religious groups operating Head Start centers to discriminate in hiring.

The Workplace Religious Freedom Act (WRFA) (S. 893) is gaining momentum in the Senate. The main co-sponsor, Senator Rick Santorum, is pushing for floor action.

WRFA could Undermine civil rights laws and employer nondiscrimination policies and practices.

The Voting Rights Act was signed into law in 1965 to end discrimination against minority voters. To strengthen the Republican majority, the Religious Right has acted in violation of the Voting Rights Act. Texas State Senator Rodney Ellis calls the actions of U.S. House Majority Leader, Tom DeLay "the largest disenfranchisement of minority voters since the Voting Rights Act was passed."

From People for the American Way: The Long Shadow of Jim Crow: Voter Intimidation and Suppression in America Today.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay went to Texas with a new map intended to redraw district lines in order to add Republican seats to the U.S. House of Representatives. Texas State Senator Rodney Ellis explains how DeLay's power grab disenfranchises Hispanic and African American voters:

The Republican advantage would be gained by removing many African American and Hispanic voters from their current Congressional districts and "packing" them into a few districts that already have Democratic majorities. The voting power of these minority voters would be dramatically diluted by the Republican plan, in contravention of the federal Voting Rights Act. If the Republicans succeed, over 1.4 million African American and Hispanic voters will be harmed. It would be the largest disenfranchisement of minority voters since the Voting Rights Act was passed.