NAACP march blasts voter ID requirement as primary approaches
Thousands attended the 10th annual
Below-freezing temperatures didn't seem to affect turnout, and
"If they could stand the heat, we can stand the cold," he said.
Barber spoke out against a state law that starting this year requires voters to bring a photo ID or instead fill out a form explaining why they don't have one. He said the change is one of the ways Republican legislators are trying to reduce election turnout.
"When you suppress the vote, politicians want us to be slaves to their decisions, without citizens being able to register their discontent at the ballot box," he said. "They have made it easier to get a gun than to vote."
Barber also pointed to a federal court's ruling this month that two of
Barber criticized Sen.
"What threw the state into chaos was those racist maps you drew in 2010," Barber said. "I want to suggest to the
Barber and the advocacy group
"People will be confused and frustrated" by the new requirements,
Republican lawmakers have said the photo ID requirement is necessary to stop voter fraud, although last year they watered down the law by allowing voters without IDs to cast a provisional ballot.
And
"We believe that these districts were drawn in accordance with the
Woodhouse issued a statement Friday criticizing Saturday's march, saying the "Moral Monday crowd" is "backed by out-of-state labor unions and special interests."
Saturday's march was partly a fundraising event for the
"We don't have the Koch brothers and
The
Barber said someone had been spreading false rumors that political campaigns weren't welcome at the march.
"That's a damn lie," he said, explaining that campaigns were welcome to participate but wouldn't be allowed to speak from the stage. "The Moral Monday movement will not be used by any campaign. We don't endorse candidates, we endorse issues."
Abortion, health care
Plenty of issues beyond voting rights were on display. Signs promoted a wide range of liberal causes, from coal ash cleanup to abortion rights.
Some even listed the bill numbers for controversial legislation passed by the
Environmental, immigration and health care advocacy groups all got a few minutes in front of the podium.
Dr.
We're here to remind
Dr.
"We're here to remind
The march celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, and many of the issues have been the same since the first march in 2007 -- education, health care and racial discrimination.
Back then,
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