Standing up for voting rights is essential in pushing back against the social and political chaos consuming the nation, activist Moya Harris said during a July 15 organizing webinar.
“Protecting the right to vote is protecting every other right we have as citizens,” said Harris, director of racial justice at Sojourners. “That’s why they (conservatives) want to take it away, because without a vote, you cannot defend your right to health care, housing, education, safety and dignity.”
Moya Harris
Harris was one of several speakers invited by webinar host Faithful Democracy to inspire voter involvement in “Good Trouble Lives On,” a July 17 national day of pro-democracy activism in the spirit of the late congressman and racial justice champion John Lewis, who died on that day in 2020.
“The Civil Rights leaders of the past have shown us the power of collective action,” organizers said. At least 1,500 communities “across the country will take to the streets, courthouses and community spaces to carry forward his fight for justice, voting rights and dignity for all.”
Coalition partners include Democracy Forward, Black Voters Matter, Interfaith Alliance, League of Women Voters, National Urban League, Bend the Arc Jewish Action and National Education Association. Many of the same groups were involved in the anti-Trump “No Kings Day” demonstrations last month.
“Good trouble” was a term Lewis coined to describe nonviolent resistance against white supremacist attacks on human and civil rights. He also described voting as “precious, almost sacred” and “the most powerful nonviolent tool” in preserving democracy, Harris added. “Good trouble means disturbing the status quo, organizing, educating, marching, voting and making sure everyone’s voice is heard by any means necessary. As John Lewis taught us, never, ever be afraid to make some noise.”
The effort also includes pressing for living wages, health care, housing and the dignity of all people, she said. “It is challenging white Christian nationalism, not just in the halls of power, but in the pulpits, in our congregations and in our families. It’s calling on people of faith to be the hands and feet of the divine and protecting democracy itself.”
“We cannot let the loudest religious voices be those who preach hate.”
People of faith must become “experts in good trouble” or risk the danger of remaining silent and therefore complicit in injustice, she said. “We cannot let the loudest religious voices be those who preach hate. We must be clear — the God of justice causes us to love our neighbor, to welcome the stranger and to defend the vulnerable.”
Nor should Americans be discouraged or intimidated by ongoing efforts to purge voting rolls, institute strict voter ID laws and close polling stations in working-class neighborhoods, Harris said. “Denying the vote is not new. It is an old, well-worn tactic of white supremacy and class oppression. Poll taxes once targeted the poor, and literacy tests targeted Black people in the South just a generation or two ago.”
Tayla Steinberg
Faith is a key motivator for members of the coalition promoting “Good Trouble Lives On,” said Talya Steinberg, associate director of government relations and advocacy with the National Council of Jewish Women.
Participants “are guided by a moral imperative, a commandment to pursue sedek, which is the Hebrew word for justice. We are communities across faiths and we are here on this call guided by our religious texts and our values.”
The past two decades have witnessed movements intent on erecting barriers to voting by shortening voting hours, reducing polling stations to create longer lines and wait times, implementing voter ID laws and placing restrictions on voter registration. The 2013 Supreme Court ruling in Shelby County v. Holder significantly weakened the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“This decision basically undid the federal government’s ability to review discriminatory changes to (state) election laws,” Steinberg explained. “We’re facing this moment of widespread voter suppression across the country, disproportionately impacting access to the ballot for communities of color, minority language speakers, low-income voters, older adults, women and so many more.”
But multiple pieces of legislation are on the way to address these challenges, she added, including the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act introduced in the U.S. House earlier this year.
That measure would require states to obtain federal approval before enacting changes to voting rights laws. “This bill will help ensure that we all have an equal say in our future,” Steinberg said.
Places where “Good Trouble” events were planned.
The Freedom to Vote Act enhances voting rights by safeguarding the electoral process, prohibiting gerrymandering and limiting the use of dark money in the political process, she explained.
The webinar panel included aides to U.S. Reps. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, and Nikema Williams, D-Ga., who described voting-rights legislation these and other legislators plan to introduce in Congress this year.
“We know we don’t have the ability to pass these bills, but we can lay the groundwork so as soon as we flip the House and Senate and presidency these can become law,” said Williams aide Jake Silverman.
“In 2016, millions of voters failed to vote because the problems associated with long wait times.”
Bills she plans to sponsor or co-sponsor include measures to ease the voter registration process for unhoused people and those who change addresses. Bills to eliminate long lines at polling stations and to provide time off for voting are also in the offing, Silverman said.
Crockett aide Cailtin-Jean Juricic said the congresswoman will introduce and support measures to guarantee the voting rights of formerly incarcerated people and to reduce wait times at polling locations.
“In 2016, millions of voters failed to vote because the problems associated with long wait times and management of polling locations. In the 2024 election, for example, people in Chicago waited as long as four hours to cast their votes,” she said.
The halls of Congress will be one of the “Good Trouble Lives On” sites, said Adam Friedman, organizing and elections strategist for Interfaith Alliance. “We know it is crucial to fight for legislation that we know will support us in pursuing justice. We know it is crucial to uphold that sacred right to vote, and we also know we have been here before. We are truly in a moment where we are fighting for our democracy, for the soul of our country.”
But it will also take the organization, dedication and involvement on a grassroots level to wage the fight, said Monica Spencer, Georgia organizer and faith coordinator for Vote Riders, a nationwide nonprofit dedicated to voter education and helping voters obtain valid voter identification.
“Authentic grassroots democracy demands that we collaborate it. Every person in our democracy has something to give, has something to say and something to do, and we must partner and collaborate.”