It’s the Fourth of July, the birthday of our nation. We generally celebrate Independence Day as the day 245 years ago that the American colonies declared their freedom from British rule. But this year’s Fourth feels quite different.

This year many Americans are not celebrating. Rather, like myself, they are feeling disappointed, sad, even outrage. They are experiencing a great loss, the potential demise of our democracy.

Instead of celebrating, this year we are faced with the challenge of renewing our democratic freedoms, including our sacred right to vote. While the colonists fought the British for their right to independence, today we are called to fight for democracy and our voting rights.

The latest example that our democracy is in peril occurred this past week when the Supreme Court upheld Arizona’s restrictions on voting rights. Once again, the conservative court majority weakened the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits any policy that “results in the denial or abridgment of the right to vote of any citizen on account of race or color.” The court found that Arizona’s policy of invalidating ballots cast in the wrong precinct and its law criminalizing the collection of mail ballots by third-party community groups or campaigns did not violate the landmark 1965 Act.[1]

The great majority of Americans, however, disagree with the Court and the Republican state legislatures that are restricting our right to vote around the country. Sixty percent of Americans support making it easier to vote by enacting automatic voter registration.[2] Even more, 68 percent, favor HR1/S1, the For the People Act which would protect and expand voting rights.[3]

So, in the spirit of the Fourth of July, it is incumbent upon all Americans who believe in the principles of democracy to join the struggle to protect our right to vote. Around the country, we are organizing, rallying and marching under the banner of Deadline for Democracy. We are demanding that Congress pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore our democracy. Go to https://deadlinefordemocracy.org/find-event to find an event near you.

Here in Santa Fe, our rally will be held on Sunday, July 11 at 11 a.m. It will take place at 106 S. Federal Place next to the downtown post office and feature NM Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, and other speakers. For details, go to https://act.indivisible.org/event/local-actions/163343.

If there ever was a time our country needed all of us, it is now. Stand up for your rights. Be part of a Deadline for Democracy rally. Call your senators and congressperson. We must save our sacred right to vote and rejuvenate our democracy. This is our country. Make your voice heard!

Bruce Berlin, J.D.

A retired, public sector ethics attorney, Berlin is the author of Breaking Big Money’s Grip on America (See breakingbigmoneysgrip.com.), the founder of New Mexicans for Money Out of Politics, a former U.S. Institute of Peace fellow, and the founder and former executive director of The Trinity Forum for International Security and Conflict Resolution. He can be reached at breakingbigmoneysgrip@gmail.com.

Subscribe to this blog at https://breakingbigmoneysgrip.com/my-blog-3/. Join the movement to revive our democracy. Together we can save the soul of America.

---

[1] https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/supreme-court-upholds-arizona-restrictions-major-voting-rights/story?id=78182724

[2] https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/546166-majority-of-americans-back-making-voting-easier-poll

[3] https://www.newsweek.com/gop-opposes-hr-1-poll-finds-majority-republicans-support-election-reform-bill-1572166