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Southern Poverty Law Center Report Southern Poverty Law Center Non Profit Org. 400 Washington Avenue • Montgomery, AL 36104 U.S. Postage PAID www.splcenter.org Southern Poverty SPLC REPORT Law Center Published by the Southern Poverty Law Center Fall 2020 Fighting Hate • Teaching Tolerance • Seeking Justice Volume 50, Number 3 Vote Your Voice to infuse $30 million in Deep South to mobilize voters The SPLC is investing up to The campaign seeks to em- president and chief executive of- that they are able to elect candi- $30 million from its endow- power communities by aiding ficer. “While we have seen gains dates who represent their values. ment in nonpartisan, nonprofit them in their fight against in voting rights and access in re- “These grants will lift up IN THIS ISSUE voter outreach organizations in voter suppression; support cent decades, since the Supreme organizations working at the Court gutted the Voting Rights ground level, and those maxi- a a a a Act in 2013, there has been a bla- mizing mobile technology and Far right exploits tant effort to deny voting rights social media in this time of so- through state actions.” cial distancing, to overcome demonstrations long-standing policies and prac- PAGE 3 Overcoming legacy of racism tices that have stifled the voice These tactics include purging and vote of Black and Brown a a a a voter rolls, blocking rights res- communities,” said Clare S. toration efforts, eliminating Richie, public policy specialist Education advocates ILLUSTRATION BY MARY KATE MCDEVITT KATE MARY BY ILLUSTRATION polling places, scaling back early at the Community Foundation. sue DeVos voting, instituting onerous vot- Organizations with a deep over funding er ID laws and limiting access to knowledge of the communities voting by mail. they serve are well positioned PAGE 4 “In addition to facing the to make a significant impact, legacy of systemic racism, explained Michael Lomax, a a a a the Deep South to increase vot- Black- and Brown-led voter communities of color face dis- president and chief executive er registration and participation outreach organizations; proto- proportionate harm from the officer of the United Negro among people of color over sev- type effective voter engagement COVID-19 pandemic,” Huang College Fund. eral election cycles. strategies; and re-enfranchise said. “Vote Your Voice ensures “We are at a point in our The Vote Your Voice initiative – returning citizens. more eligible voters of color in history as a nation when the a partnership with the Community “This country has a long his- the Deep South will have a say hard-won victories in the voter Foundation for Greater Atlanta – tory of denying voting rights in the direction of our country.” struggle for Black people are be- New film highlights will help support voter registration, to its citizens, especially Black The Vote Your Voice grant- ing compromised,” he said. “We threat to democracy education and mobilization ef- and Brown people, returning ees will engage millions of voters have to fight for that. ” forts in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, citizens and young people,” across the South to exercise their Go to splcenter.org/vote-your- PAGE 5 Louisiana and Mississippi. said Margaret Huang, SPLC basic right to vote and ensure voice to learn more. The State of Women’s Suffrage SPLC LAUNCHES SOUNDS LIKE HATE PODCAST 100 years ago, the 19th Amendment gave for them and other women of color to vote. The SPLC launched its first original podcast – Sounds Like women the right to vote, but systemic sexism As director of the Voting Hate – in August. The audio documentary series explores the and disenfranchisement of Black women still Rights Practice Group at the dangerous realities of hate in modern America and the ways Southern Poverty Law Center, I people have escaped the far-right extremist movement. block equitable access to the ballot fight to ensure that everyone has Season one, produced and hosted by award-winning jour- the right to vote – regardless of nalists/producers/filmmakers Geraldine Moriba and Jamila By Nancy Abudu garner support in every state, so race or gender. Paksima, takes listeners into communities grappling with ex- Deputy Legal Director it unified around a loftier goal: a tremism. During each two-part chapter, they speak with people constitutional amendment that Systemic sexism, affected by hate, including a woman who became radicalized in Like other disenfranchised would mandate ballot access for disenfranchisement the world of white nationalism. people in the United States, women across the country. That The centennial of the 19th “As journalists representing listeners, women have employed many amendment, which was first in- Amendment’s passage is an op- we are asking questions and following ev- strategies over the years in their troduced in Congress in 1878, portunity to celebrate the courage ery lead even when they conclude at frus- fight for the right to vote. wasn’t ratified until Aug. 18, 1920. and conviction of the countless trating dead ends,” Moriba said. “Sounds Like In the late 19th century, some This year, as we commem- women who have fought on the Hate is not an interview show. It’s conversa- women pushed for equal suf- orate the 100th anniversary of front lines for equal rights. tions and authentic recordings of unscripted frage laws in individual states. the 19th Amendment – which But after successfully expand- dialogue that push and pull at stereotypes, Others turned to the courts. Still officially gave women the right ing women’s suffrage to all states, fragilities and firmly held beliefs.” others made their voices heard to vote – we must ensure that all the movement essentially split Sounds Like Hate covers a diverse range of topics, from a heat- through protests, silent vigils women have equitable access to into two camps: those who wanted ed battle to remove a controversial mascot and recognize Black and hunger strikes. the ballot box. to forge ahead for creation of the Lives Matter at a Vermont high school to an SPLC-exclusive in- They faced a swift backlash, Over the last century, while Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) vestigation into a white-power hate group. much like other groups seeking the political power of women has and those who focused on regis- “The unfortunate reality is that bigotry and racism are part of their constitutional rights, such as grown, seemingly gender-neu- tering and turning out the vote of the social fabric and history of our country,” said SPLC President the activists who emerged decades tral ballot requirements have as many women as possible. and Chief Executive Officer Margaret Huang. “It’s our hope that later in the civil rights movement disparately impacted women’s While both endeavors were this series will encourage listeners to take action against hate in who were thrown in jail or physi- voting rights. laudable, the split undermined their own communities.” cally assaulted for the right to vote. Black women, in particular, the united front that was crucial Sounds Like Hate is available on all major podcast platforms, Nevertheless, they persisted. have suffered disproportion- for either strategy to succeed. including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, By 1916, the movement for ately from voter suppression TuneIn and more. You can also listen at soundslikehate.org. women’s suffrage had failed to tactics that have made it harder Continued on Page 8 2 SPLC REPORT // WWW.SPLCENTER.ORG FALL 2020 A MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT & CEO MARGARET HUANG SPLC REPORT Published by the Southern Poverty Law Center Finding Hope and Optimism in 2020 FALL 2020 The demonstrations over po- neo-Nazis attending demonstra- 135 symbols have been removed us stay rooted in the real experi- The Southern Poverty Law lice brutality taking place across tions in Knoxville, Tennessee; from public spaces. ences of classroom educators by Center is a catalyst for the country offer hope that our Washington, D.C., and Dallas As you’ll see in this issue, the providing diverse perspectives racial justice in the South nation might finally, and mean- only days after police killed SPLC is turning hope into action. and feedback on new resources. and beyond, working ingfully, address the anti-Black George Floyd in Minneapolis. Our “Vote Your Voice” initia- in partnership with racism that is an all-too-familiar It is easy, and completely tive is investing up to $30 million Determination and resolve communities to dismantle feature not only of law enforce- understandable, to fall into de- over several election cycles to There are other poignant re- white supremacy, ment, but our institutions and spair under the weight of the help grassroots organizations minders in these pages of how strengthen intersectional society at large. crises we are experiencing in register and mobilize voters of each and every one of us can movements, and advance They also provide hope that 2020. But there color across the make a positive change in each the human rights of we might finally begin to address is reason for hope Deep South. We other’s lives, and in our commu- all people. the painful inequities in this and optimism: us, are holding offi- nities – such as the inspirational DAN CHUNG DAN EDITORIAL DIRECTOR country laid bare by the pandem- all of us. cials accountable story of four Black women and Matthew Dakotah ic. However, President Trump’s Our nation has for protecting the the movement they created to authoritarian response to the awakened to racial health of people rename schools bearing the EXECUTIVE EDITOR demonstrations – and deadly and social injus- locked away in names of Confederate figures in Jamie Kizzire violence committed by others – tice in a way that prisons and im- Montgomery, Alabama. You can MANAGING EDITOR threatens to dash this hope.
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