By VANESSA LANGDON
News Editor
and
MIKE ELLIS CARROLL
Contributing Writer
Author and contributing writer for “The Nation” magazine Ari Berman was at The College of Saint Rose Wednesday, April 20 to lecture about his book, “Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America.”
“This book is really a magnificent thing,” said Scott Lemieux, assistant professor of political science at Saint Rose.
Berman’s book investigates the extensive legal history of the right to vote in the United States of America. His arrival on campus, just a day after the New York state primary, made audience members eager to hear what he had to say.
Berman explained the complex and turbulent history of the Voting Rights Act to those eagerly listening in Saint Joseph’s Hall.
“I’m telling you there are problems,” Berman said of the suppression of voting that still exists today. “I’m documenting those problems.”
The issue of voting rights has not been brought up once at political debates this election season, according to Berman.
The Voting Rights Act was signed into law by Lyndon Johnson to eliminate voting obstacles for African-Americans under the 15th Amendment, which granted them the right to vote. The act faced several challenges throughout the years, most recently in 2013, when the Supreme Court, under Chief Justice John Roberts, invalidated essential parts of the act. The actions of the Supreme Court freed nine historically discriminatory southern states from federal voting regulations that previously ensured they were not obstructing voting, explained Berman to the crowd.
Chief Justice Roberts, according to Berman, saw the law as “no longer necessary” due to President Barack Obama being elected as the first black president. Berman cringed slightly while he explained this most recent and important decision.
“It’s very well timed, perhaps too well timed, with the election problems in New York yesterday,” Berman said of his book and the issues that occurred on New York primary day, April 19.
Zachary Petker, Lexi Harris and Danielle Viannia, all juniors at The College of Saint Rose, attended the lecture for extra credit for their U.S. History course.
“This lecture is really relevant, because with America especially, it’s just a lot of history repeating itself today more than ever,” Petker said.
Fellow Saint Rose student, sophomore and political science major Audrey Goodemote, was familiar with the topic of the lecture having discussed the Voting Rights Act in her politics of race and ethnicity class on campus.
“I really liked it. It’s a great beginning for a larger discussion,” she said. “I was really happy that we touched on the issue of voter suppression.”
The College purchased copies of Berman’s book, “Give Us the Ballot,” to be given out to students at the conclusion of the lecture. The student lined up to get a chance to chat quickly with him and get their copies signed. Berman agreed to speak at the College for a lower cost than usual, allowing the Political Science department to use the extra funds to get the book in the hands of the students. The book usually sells for $28.
After his lecture, Berman took a handful of questions from the audience.
One woman encapsulated the voting problem faced by Americans, asking where we go from here when American rights are stripped from us. Berman considered the difficult question, smiling uncomfortably, then delivered the most honest answer he could muster: “Barack Obama said [while quoting Dr. Martin Luther King], that the arc of history is long, but it bends towards justice. I think it’s more accurate to say that it bends and it snaps back and often the moments of greatest progress are followed by the moments of greatest retrenchment.”
