A Timeline of Voting Rights and Suppression in America
June 24, 2024
DeGroat (Native Mascots, Myths, and Misrepresentation) and Lewis (Imani’s Recipe for Teamwork) collaborate in this smart and succinct work, a straightforward guide to the history of voting rights in the U.S. Beginning with the signing of the Constitution, the creators detail the difficulties that women, Indigenous peoples, and nonwhite Americans and immigrants experienced in their efforts to expand voting rights. Infographics throughout depict an easy-to-follow timeline along which important events, years, and court case decisions are summed up in brief,
as when, in 1856, it was declared that white men did not need to own land to vote. A following graphic addresses Dred Scott v. Sandford in 1857, which ruled that “enslaved and free Black people living in the U.S. were not citizens,” and were therefore unable to vote. A chapter titled “Even More Barriers?” points out various other obstacles toward fair voting rights, such as the lack of non-English languages on ballots, while later sections address contemporary challenges (gerrymandering), and triumphs (Brakebill v. Jaeger). “When one citizen is denied their right to vote, their voice is silenced,” the authors assert in this approachable call to action. Back matter includes next steps, reflection questions, a glossary, and more. Ages 9–14.