Clinton On Alabama’s DMV Closures: ‘It’s A Blast From The Jim Crow Past’

Hillary Clinton holds a press conference to discuss her economic vision for the United States as she runs for 2016 Democratic Presidential candidate, at New York University's Leaonard N. Stern School of Business in N... Hillary Clinton holds a press conference to discuss her economic vision for the United States as she runs for 2016 Democratic Presidential candidate, at New York University's Leaonard N. Stern School of Business in New York, NY, on July 24, 2015. Federal investigators are asking Justice Department to look into wether Hillary Clinton kept classified information on her personal email server when she was Secretary of State. (Photo by Anthony Behar) *** Please Use Credit from Credit Field *** MORE LESS
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Hillary Clinton slammed the closure of 31 driver’s license offices in Alabama — many in majority-black counties — as “a blast from the Jim Crow past.”

The closures, announced this week, hit majority-black counties especially hard. Under Alabama’s new tougher version of its voter ID law, voters must have a photo ID, such as a driver’s license, to vote. Every Alabama county with at least 75 percent African American registered voters will lose its DMV office, according to local reports.

“This is only going to make it harder for people to vote,” Clinton said in a statement Friday. “It’s a blast from the Jim Crow past.”

Clinton has made voting rights a major platform of her presidential campaign. Alabama has defended the DMV closures, saying that there are other options for residents to obtain an ID that will enable them to vote.

Read Clinton’s full statement below:

“I strongly oppose Alabama’s decision to close driver’s license offices across the state, especially in counties that have a significant majority of African Americans. Just a few years ago, Alabama passed a law requiring citizens to have a photo ID to vote. Now they’re shutting down places where people get those photo IDs. This is only going to make it harder for people to vote. It’s a blast from the Jim Crow past.

“We’re better than this. We should be encouraging more Americans to vote, not making voting harder. As President, I’ll push for automatic voter registration for every American when they turn 18, and a new national standard of at least 20 days of early in-person voting in every state. And I’ll work with Congress to restore key protections of the Voting Rights Act.

“African Americans fought for the right to vote in the face of unthinkable hatred. They stood up and were beaten down, marched and were turned back. Some were even killed. But in the end, the forces of justice overcame. Alabama should do the right thing. It should reverse this decision. And it should start protecting the franchise for every single voter, no matter the color of their skin.”

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Notable Replies

  1. Unfortunately, it’s worse than that. This isn’t just about denying Blacks the vote- it’s about hurting the Democratic Party so that they can’t take seats away from the Republicans. In the end, this is all about setting up a White Man’s Utopia in Alabama.

  2. I completely agree, except that I just can’t wrap my brain around “utopia in Alabama”. I could more easily comprehend “utopia in Bakersfield”.

  3. Avatar for tao tao says:

    No, it’s a blast from the Jim Crow present. The tradition of keeping the vote away from citizens in Alabama only changed tactics.

  4. Well said.

    Republicans don’t believe in democracy, 'cause that would result in electing more Democrats. So they’re doing everything they can to limit the vote to older, less-educated, lower-income, christianist, white males.

  5. Avatar for chammy chammy says:

    I hope someone has filed a lawsuit.

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