OPINION: Voter ID laws discriminatory
I spent last weekend in lovely Berkeley, Calif., visiting my dear aunt and uncle. Despite the launch into an astronomically higher cost of living, my outlook in the area is capital – I’m hoping to move there post-graduation and therefore spent a good amount of time looking at potential jobs, cozy nooks under bridges, and cardboard boxes that are at least 6 feet long.
My aunt and uncle are quite liberal on the political spectrum. And believe it or not, outside of our socially cushioned valley, I am rather conservative – so going to visit them always provides me with copious opportunities for a fresh outlook on things, particularly social issues and politics.
This trip, however, the enlightenment I received disturbed rather than pleased me. We sat chatting around the dinner table when Uncle Erik brought up a video on YouTube from Sarah Silverman called Let My People Vote. It was only four minutes long and full of scandalously funny material, but the deeper subject it addressed is anything but a cause for hilarity.
The video calls attention to new laws which are, or are in the process of, being passed by several states that require voters to have a valid photo ID in order to prevent voting fraud.
Well that’s not so bad, right? The Supreme Court did rule that requiring photo ID to vote was constitutional in Indiana, so it probably is in all other states. There are a few problems with these laws though, the first being only certain types of photo IDs are available.
In some states you need a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, identification card or a government employee badge. Some will let you use a student ID, but only from a government-accredited school.
In Tennessee, student IDs aren’t valid identification to vote – but you can use your gun permit. Seriously? They won’t let youngsters getting an education use their school IDs but any illiterate dick with a shotgun can show up and vote? Right on, Tennessee. Right on.
These laws are clearly intended to eliminate certain populations from casting their vote. It’s liberal-trending minorities who always fall into the statistics of those least likely to have the correct ID. African Americans, Latinos, poor people, young people and students have less income and therefore less access to restrictive documents and IDs.
For example: Who is likely to have a driver’s license? Someone who can afford a car and insurance. Who’s likely to have a government-issued picture ID? Someone who has documentation to prove citizenship (and it’s surprisingly easy to be a citizen without the expensive documentation required to prove it.) Also, someone who’s not working all day during the DMV’s open hours, someone who has a means of transportation there and back and someone who has the time to sit through the long lines without young kids of their own to watch after.
And really, a gun permit? When Gallup polls show than almost twice as many Republicans own guns as Democrats, we can see the obvious direction these laws are going.
In Pennsylvania, where debate over the ID laws is raging particularly fiercely, state House Republican leader Mike Turzai settled any qualms about who wants these laws passed when he said in a state committee meeting, “Voter ID, which is going to allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania: Done.” To quote Sarah Silverman’s reaction: WTF?
And is there actually any voter fraud to justify these laws? Well after spending some serious time researching the problem, I have to conclude no, not really. In fact, not at all. Do a Google search on successfully prosecuted voter fraud cases if you aren’t sure. Instances where voter fraud was suspected were typically just clerical errors or honest mistakes by voters – not somebody risking serious financial and legal consequences to create one extra vote for Obama.
Unfortunately though, I have to concur that it’s not unconstitutional to ask citizens to provide proper photo ID when voting – so the smart, effective thing to do is to make people aware these laws are taking place. Utah isn’t one of the voter ID states – yet – and I had never even heard about them before my visit to California.
I think regardless of our political orientation, we can all agree that the equal civil right of casting a vote is indispensable. Help make sure it really is equal this voting term. And if these voter ID laws come to Utah, get ready to spend some serious time at the DMV.
– Liz Emery is a senior majoring in English with an emphasis in creative writing. Her column runs here every other Thursday. Comments may be sent to her at liz.emery@yahoo.com.