Letter from Lani Guinier to New York Times Editor re Voting Rights Act
Correspondence
June 17, 1982

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Legal Department General, Lani Guinier Correspondence. Letter from Lani Guinier to New York Times Editor re Voting Rights Act, 1982. 3e06300b-e492-ee11-be37-6045bdeb8873. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/de57cdd6-f828-4563-9709-2b77a16e4359/letter-from-lani-guinier-to-new-york-times-editor-re-voting-rights-act. Accessed April 19, 2025.
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bfense June 17, lgBZ Letters to the Edltor The New York Times 229 West 43rO Street New York, N.Y. 10036 Dear S1r: We wrlte to ampllfy the remarks of Lanl Guinler on the Votlng Rlghts Act quoted in part 1n the Week In Revlew, June 13, 1982. There should be more minorlty members in bhe legislatures because they provide perspective to other members that for too long has been absent, serve as role models for young people: present posltlve lmages for al-l people, and by their presence restrain the use of offenslve language which adversely affects decislon making, and is stilI heard too often in legislatlve halls. But merely electlng more mlnority candidates is not the purpose of the Votlng Rlghts Act. It ai-ms to give mlnorlty voters the opportunlty to elect representatlves of thelr cholce, black or whlte. Some have argued that lt does not matter whether a concentratlon of mlnori-ty voters ls carved up into two, three or more districts because the representatives of those distrlcts mltst take all constltuentsr views into account. However, equal access to the po11tlcal process cannot be afforded when a mlnority community 1s gerrymandered lnto several smaller minorities in a number of districts on the supposition that they will be able to lnfluence two or three elected officlals. Experience teaches that 1n sltuatlons whlch still exlst, wlth a racially polarlzed el-ectorate and a history of dlscrlmlnatlon, these racial fragments have Llttle or no lnfluence at all. 0n the other hand, when the minority community is sltuated so that lt can elect an advo- cate of whatever race, it is much more llkely there w111 be falr representatlon. Contributiona are deductible for U,S. income tar purposeg Ths NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE & EOUCATI0NAL FUND is not part ol tho National Association lor the Advancement ol Colored People although it was lounded by it and shares its commitment lo equal rights. LDF has had lor over 25 yoars a separate Board, program, stafl, oflice and budget. NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND, INC. l0ColumbusCircle, NewYork, N.Y.10019 c (212) 586-8397 o -2- June 17, 1982 LeglsLators 1s lmportant. . Farleglslators of al1 races andrepresent the mlnorlty commun_ Defense Fund, Inc. Ms. IQr,rra'i. Murphy , ACLU, .Leglslatlve Representatlve Laughlln McDonald, Esq.Dlrector, Southern Reglonal Offlce ACLU Armand'Derfner, Esq. Jolnt Center fon polltlbal Studles LG/r . i- t 18 63 18 64