The Texas office of the Children’s Defense Fund is grateful to Texas House Democrats broke quorum to halt consideration of voter suppression measures being rammed through the current special legislative session by Republican leadership. During the recent regular session, hundreds of Texans spoke out against these efforts, resulting in numerous amendments offered to mitigate their damage. Instead, the bills were finalized behind closed doors—an anti-democratic process to pass an anti-democratic law.
Patrick Bresette, Executive Director of CDF-Texas noted, “The Children’s Defense Fund was born out of the civil rights movement, with deep roots in the Freedom Summer of 1964 when hundreds of volunteers joined African Americans in Mississippi to fight against voter intimidation and discrimination at the polls. Today, fifty-seven years later, the struggle for equal access to the ballot box continues. We applaud the Texas House Democrats for this bold move to stop voter suppression in its tracks.”
CDF-Texas has proudly joined dozens of organizations and thousands of concerned Texans to speak out against the anti-democratic bills on the table in this special session. These measures deliberately target young voters, and disproportionately young voters of color across the state. We will not let an out-of-touch Republican leadership silence the voices of Texas’ future leaders. Protecting their right to vote freely, easily, and without intimidation is what our democracy demands. It’s because of our collective voices that the Texas House Democrats took action, and we will continue to fight for our freedom to vote.
“While Texas Democrats take this fight to Washington DC, hundreds of young Texans will gather at in Austin today for a Voting Rights Advocacy Day at the Texas Capitol. We join them in fierce opposition to anti-voting bills that try to silence our voices, weaken our elections, and undermine our democracy.”