The Discrimination In Politics
Imagine going to the local polling place. You have registered to vote and you have your ID in hand. However, when you go to register, the clerk stops you The amendment that granted African Americans the right to vote was passed in 1870 (PBS, 1). However, this didn’t stop the states from passing laws that got around the amendment. The Opinion of the Court in Smith v. Allwright is a case that deals with such a law.
In the early 20th century, the Texas Democratic Party required all of its primary election voters to be white based on state law (Oyez 1). An African-American voter from Harris County named Lonnie E. Smith found this law and requirement to violate his 15th amendment right to vote (Oyez, 1). Smith contacted the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and lawyers from the organization brought the case before the Supreme Court (PBS, 1). Supreme Court Justice Stanley Reed delivered the opinion of the Court (Oyez, 1). In the opinion, Justice Reed stated, “If the state requires a certain electoral procedure, prescribes a general election ballot made up of party nominees so chosen and limits the choice of the electorate in general elections for state offices, practically speaking, to those whose names appear on such a ballot, it endorses, adopts and enforces the discrimination against Negroes, practiced by a party entrusted by Texas law with the determination of the qualifications of participants in the primary” (Justia, 1). By having white primaries, the Texas Democratic Party was allowing white people to dominate politics (NAACP LDF, 1). Justice Reed further elaborated that the United States was a constitutional democracy and the natural law of the country allowed all citizens to vote regardless of race (NAACP LDF, 1). A state defying African Americans the right to vote was unconstitutional (NAACP LDF, 1). This was monumental for the Court who had struck down similar court cases in the years previous.
Justice Stanley Reed had approximately 35 years of experience in law at the time of the opinion (Department of Justice, 1). He had also received a bachelor’s degree from Kentucky Wesleyan University and Yale University and studied law at 3 universities (Department of Justice, 1). This variety of education and law experience makes Justice Reed a reliable figure to give the opinion of the Court. The speech was received by the parties involved in the case, as well as a court transcriber to be documented for the public.
The opinion of the Court in Smith v. Allwright needs a very minimal background to be understood by the audience. An understanding of the bare bones of the case would be necessary to fully understand the opinion, but nothing else is required. It may be helpful, however, to have background knowledge of the US Constitution and how the Supreme Court functions as an entity. This document is incredibly reliable due to the nature of which it was written and how it was delivered. The speech was delivered after a series of hearings to determine each side’s argument before opinions were written. Justice Reed’s experience in law also helps the reliableness of the speech.
The society that produced this document was one of unrest. It occurred after the Civil War and reconstruction began. Racial tensions were high in the South. The Southern states were still incredibly reluctant to see African Americans as people and produced the Jim Crow laws, one of which being Texas white primaries. Smith v. Allwright occurred on the precipice of the Civil Rights Movement. The NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund says that without the win on the case, the Civil Rights Movement might not have been as successful as it had been (NAACP LDF, 1). They also state that African American voter registration increased following the decision which further led to African American citizenship (NAACP LDF, 1). This speech is a reminder to society of how life was like and how commonplace discrimination could be. It is a reminder of why society should never regress back to that time period. Most importantly it is a reminder that if you continually fight for what you believe is right, you will win.
This document is important to me because everyone should have the right to vote. One of the most exciting parts of turning eighteen was the fact that I was now able to have a say in how our country is run. I can’t imagine going to vote and being stopped at the door because of something I cannot control. The United States is a constitutional democracy and runs on people’s votes (NAACP LDF, 1). Without this attribute, the United States would be a shell of what it is today.
