I was thinking today about the little events that influence global politics, and all of our lives. Had Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s car not taken a wrong turn at the junction of Appel quay and Franzjosefstrasse in Serbia on that day in 1914, passing in front of a loitering 19-year-old Gavrila Principe, who just happened to […]
Tag Archives: Voting Rights Act
Could this impending battle over the Supreme Court tear our nation apart?
And this is what happens when you gut the Voting Rights Act
In late June of 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, stating that the provision, which, for almost 50 years, had required that certain areas of the country with dismal civil rights records obtain approval from the Justice Department or a special […]
Dischord’s Ian MacKaye on touring as a family, building community, making the world a better place, and what he’s got in mind for Ypsilanti this Friday evening
I had the occasion this evening to speak with Ian MacKaye, the former frontman of Minor Threat and Fugazi, who will be visiting Ypsilanti this Friday evening to play an all-ages show at the Dreamland Theater alongside Amy Farina, in their heavy yet minimalist two-piece band
Gutting the Voting Rights Act… Can poll taxes be too far away?
In a 5-4 decision earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, stating that the provision, which, for almost 50 years, has required that certain areas of the country with dismal civil rights records obtain approval from the Justice Department or a special federal court before […]
How gerrymandering is killing American Democracy, and why we need to fight for transparent, non-partisan redistricting in Michigan
Every ten years, the Michigan legislature has an opportunity, after assessing the results of the federal census, to redraw congressional districts to reflect shifts in population. The most recent redrawing of lines took place in 2011, and was approved by the Department of Justice in January, 2012, despite concerns that redrawn districts violated the Voting […]