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An Open Letter

To: Sen. Merkley, Rep. Bynum, Sen. Wyden

From: A constituent in Bend, OR

October 17, 2025

Protect against racism The Supreme Court’s conservative majority seems ready to gut what remains of the Voting Rights Act. In Callais v. Louisiana, their questions made clear an intent to make racial discrimination in voting easier to hide and harder to prove — effectively giving states free rein to silence Black and minority voters. If Section 2 is weakened or struck down, it would destroy one of the last civil-rights safeguards against racial gerrymandering and could lock partisan control of the House for a generation. Congress cannot sit idle while the Court dismantles democracy. It must pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (H.R. 14 / S. 4) to restore preclearance, reinforce Section 2 protections, and guarantee that every American has an equal voice in elections. The Constitution grants Congress — not the courts — the power to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment’s promise of fair voting. Surrender is not an option. A ruling against Section 2 would be a betrayal of civil-rights history, but it would not end the struggle for justice. Giving up now would “sell the American people short.” We have agency, and Congress has the duty to act. Do not let this Court erase the progress generations fought for. Pass H.R. 14 and S. 4 now — before voter suppression becomes the law of the land.

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