Gays Win While Blacks Lose Ground in Historic Rulings

[Purveyor]

By Greg Stohr - Jun 27, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court ended its blockbuster civil-rights term pointing in opposite directions: cutting legal protections for racial minorities even as it bolstered them for gays.

Decisions requiring tougher court scrutiny of affirmative action and striking down much of the landmark 1965 Voting Rights Act were still fresh yesterday when the court cleared the way for gay marriage in California and invalidated a federal law that denied benefits to married same-sex couples.

“I think it was a victory for American democracy,” President Barack Obama said today in Senegal, where he was starting a three-nation tour of Africa.

Only 24 hours earlier, minority-rights advocates were denouncing the court’s conservative majority for gutting the Voting Rights Act, the law that opened the polls to millions of blacks across the South. The court voted 5-4 to nullify the requirement that all or parts of 15 states get federal clearance before changing their election rules or voting lines.

Obama called that ruling “a mistake” because suppression of minority voting still exists in some regions of the country. He said he wanted to work with Congress in a non-partisan way to address the defects cited by the top court.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2013-06-27/gays-win-while-blacks-lose-ground-in-historic-u-s-june.html

[leftstreet]

1. "a mistake" Obama is the most mediocre Prez in history n/t

[KittyWampus]

7. according to a tiny fraction of the left.

[leftstreet]

9. 2012 Prez election: lowest turnout in ages n/t

[Maximumnegro]

2. Divide and Conquer

One of the oldest political tricks in the book...

[KamaAina]

3. That should read "blacks and Latinos"

For instance, none of the three California counties covered under Section 5 (Monterey, Kings and Yuba) has a significant black population. But they all have a substantial Latin@ population (in Monterey's case, a majority!)

[Skidmore]

4. So the answer to that is to unite.

Don't play that game.

[William769]

5. Some people get off on playing that game.

Case in point.

[Skidmore]

6. What are you saying?

[William769]

8. This was by no means directed at you just responded to what you said.

I'm pretty sure my message got across already though to the intended audience.

[Skidmore]

10. Thanks for clarifying.

I really do believe that we all need to hold as a solid coalition of women, minorities, and members of the LGBTQ communities. It's more important now than ever given that the 2014 election is ahead. Together we can be strong but allowing division will help no one.

[William769]

11. I agree with you 100%

the 3 you mentioned have tried to be divided on several occasions, and sometimes it's worked.

I for one can see the forest through the trees. Some people need to burn down the trees to see the forest & when they burn the trees down what are they left with?

[uponit7771]

12. +1

[uponit7771]

13. of course a winger sight would put the decisions like this...