The same principle pertains in nondistricting aspects of voting law, where race-based discrimination places the disfavored voters at the disadvantage of exclusion from the franchise without any alternative benefit. Of the following two options-creation of two minority influence districts or of a single majority-minority district-is one "narrowly tailored" and the other not? APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA, No. Proc. the purchase to her American Express card. Until today, the Court has analyzed equal protection claims involving race in electoral districting differently from equal protection claims involving other forms of governmental conduct, and before turning to the different regimes of analysis it will be useful to set out the relevant respects in which such districting differs from the characteristic circumstances in which a State might otherwise consciously consider race. But "[a] number of states refused to take no for an answer and continued to circumvent the fifteenth amendment's prohibition through the use of both subtle and blunt instruments, perpetuating ugly patterns of pervasive racial discrimination." The Equal Protection Clause provides that "[n]o State shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Because the General Assembly's reapportionment plan affected the covered counties, the parties agree that 5 applied. Where members of a racial minority group vote as a cohesive unit, practices such as multimember or atlarge electoral systems can reduce or nullify minority voters' ability, as a group, "to elect the candidate of their choice." 3. Nor, because of the distinctions between the two categories, is there any risk that Fourteenth Amendment districting law as such will be taken to imply anything for purposes of general Fourteenth Amendment scrutiny about "benign" racial discrimination, or about group entitlement as distinct from individual protection, or about the appropriateness of strict or other heightened scrutiny.7. See ante, at 666-667, and n. 6 (dissenting opinion). The existence of bizarre and uncouth district boundaries is powerful evidence of an ulterior purpose behind the shaping of those boundaries-usually a purpose to advantage the political party in control of the districting process. ); id., at 180, and n. (Stewart, J., joined by Powell, J., concurring in judgment).3. 639-642. But it suffices to illustrate the unworkability of a standard that is divorced from any measure of constitutional harm. ); id., at 175-179 (Brennan, J., concurring in part); id., at 180 (Stewart, J., concurring in judgment). 1973. or benefit provided to others.4 All citizens may register, vote, and be represented. Fast Facts: Shaw v. Reno Case Argued: April 20, 1993 Decision Issued: June 28, 1993 1300 (1966). The first question is easy. 1 It has been argued that the required showing of discriminatory effect should be lessened once a plaintiff successfully demonstrates intentional discrimination. Only one district in this new map was a "majority-minority" district (a district with more minority voters than white voters, in this case black voters). In this case, however, we know what the legislators' purpose was: The North Carolina Legislature drew District 12 to include a majority of African-American voters. 6 This is not to say that a group that has been afforded roughly proportional representation never can make out a claim of unconstitutional discrimination. Instead, it is the State that must rebut the allegation that race was taken into account, a fact that, together with the legislators' consideration of ethnic, religious, and other group characteristics, I had thought we practically took for granted, see supra, at 660. Brief for State Appellees 5, n. 6. They threaten to stigmatize individuals by reason of their membership in a racial group and to incite racial hostility. I The voting age population of North Carolina is approxi-mately 78% white, 20% black, and 1% Native American; the remaining 1% is predominantly Asian. Might the consumer be better off with $2,000\$2,000$2,000 in income? See post, at 679 (opinion of STEVENS, J. The difference between constitutional and unconstitutional gerrymanders has nothing to do with whether they are based on assumptions about the groups they affect, but whether their purpose is to enhance the power of the group in control of the districting process at the expense of any minority group, and thereby to strengthen the unequal distribution of electoral power. Ante, at 653; see also ante, at 658.8, Nonetheless, in those cases where this cause of action is sufficiently pleaded, the State will have to justify its decision to consider race as being required by a compelling state interest, and its use of race as narrowly tailored to that interest. Id., at 179 (Stewart, J., concurring in judgment). by Wayne R. Arden and Jeffrey M. Wice; for the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights under Law et al. Indeed, the Voting Rights Act and our case law make clear that a reapportionment plan that satisfies 5 still may be enjoined as unconstitutional. See Appendix, infra. 376 U. S., at 66-67. It did not do so. This small sample only begins to scratch the surface of the problems raised by the majority's test. They reinforce the belief, held by too many for too much of our history, that individuals should be judged by the color of their skin. Such evidence will always be useful in cases that lack other evidence of invidious intent. Supp., at 475-477 (opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part). Race in redistricting is permissible as long as configurations are not too extreme, ch 7 part 2 prep pronouns and demonstratives, Christina Dejong, Christopher E. Smith, George F Cole, Government in America: Elections and Updates Edition, George C. Edwards III, Martin P. Wattenberg, Robert L. Lineberry. Forty of North Carolina's one hundred counties are covered by 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, 42 U. S. C. 1973c, which prohibits a jurisdiction subject to its provisions from implementing changes in a "standard, practice, or procedure with respect to voting" without federal authorization, ibid. The most compelling evidence of the Court's position prior to this day, for it is most directly on point, is UJO, 430 U. S. 144 (1977). Although the statute that redrew the city limits of Tuskegee was race neutral on its face, plaintiffs alleged that its effect was impermissibly to remove from the city virtually all black voters and no white voters. 430 U. S., at 167-168 (opinion of WHITE, J., joined by STEVENS and REHNQUIST, JJ.). of Gal. As the majority recognizes, "redistricting differs from other kinds of state decisionmaking in that the legislature always is aware of race when it draws district lines, just as it is aware of age, economic status, religious and political persuasion, and a variety of other demographic factors." zarre shape of District 12 demonstrates, and that there is no evidence of black political cohesion. 10 This appears to be what has occurred in this instance. Or can it maintain that change, while attempting to enhance minority voting power in some other manner? Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act forbids districting plans that will have a discriminatory effect on minority groups. North Carolina's decision to create a majority-minority district can be explained as an attempt to meet this objection. The Democratic National Committee maintained that the minority districts were constitutional, while the Republican National Committee argued that they were not. plan did not minimize or unfairly cancel out white voting strength." Byron R. White White. To begin with, the complaint nowhere alleges any type of stigmatic harm. The "historic and present condition" of the Mexican-American community, id., at 767, a status of cultural and economic marginality, id., at 768, as well as the legislature's unresponsiveness to the group's interests, id., at 768-769, justified the conclusion that MexicanAmericans were "'effectively removed from the political processes,'" and "invidiously excluded from effective participation in political life," id., at 769. Racial classifications of any sort pose the risk of lasting harm to our society. Rather, appellants' complaint alleged that the deliberate segregation of voters into separate districts on the basis of race violated their constitutional right to participate in a "color-blind". of Ed., 476 U. S. 267, 277-278 (plurality opinion). You're all set! Fast Facts: Baker v. Carr by Herbert Wachtell, William H. Brown III, Thomas J. Henderson, Frank R. Parker, Brenda Wright, Nicholas DeB. to Brief for Federal Appellees lOa. "Dilution" thus refers to the effects of districting decisions not on an individual's political power viewed in isolation, but on the political power of a group. J.). On the same reasoning, I would affirm the District Court's dismissal of appellants' claim in this instance. 7 The Court accuses me of treating the use of race in electoral redistricting as a "benign" form of discrimination. But the State must have a "'strong basis in evidence for [concluding] that remedial action [is] necessary.'" Justia makes no guarantees or warranties that the annotations are accurate or reflect the current state of law, and no annotation is intended to be, nor should it be construed as, legal advice. Yes; the Court agreed that the shape of the proposed district was so odd that there was no compelling explanation for its shape other than separating voters by race. tution), it has seemed more appropriate for the Court to identify impermissible uses by describing particular effects sufficiently serious to justify recognition under the Fourteenth Amendment. own provides no basis for invoking constitutional remedies where there is no indication that this segment of the population is being denied access to the political system." Under this approach, in the absence of an allegation of such cognizable harm, there is no need for further scrutiny because a gerrymandering claim cannot be proven without the element of harm. The second majority-black district, District 12, is even more unusually shaped. The principle of equality is at war with the notion that District A must be represented by a Negro, as it is with the notion that District B must be represented by a Caucasian, District C by a Jew, District D by a Catholic, and so on. That system, by whatever name it is called, is a divisive force in a community, emphasizing differences between candidates and voters that are irrelevant in the constitutional sense. "When racial or religious lines are drawn by the State, the multiracial, multireligious communities that our Constitution seeks to weld together as one become separatist; antagonisms that relate to race or to religion rather than to political issues are generated; communities seek not the best representative but the best racial or religious partisan. Significant changes in the area of redistricting and gerrymandering, 1. In the absence of an allegation of such harm, I would affirm the judgment of the District Court. 21A376 (21-1087) v. MARCUS CASTER, ET AL. Appellants sued the Governor of North Carolina, the Lieutenant Governor, the Secretary of State, the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, and members of the North Carolina State Board of Elections (state appellees), together with two federal officials, the Attorney General and the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division (federal appellees). For much of our Nation's history, that right sadly has been denied to many because of race. indicator that some form of gerrymandering (racial or other) might have taken place and that "something may be amiss." Supp., at 468-469. 1 See Cousins v. City Council of Chicago, 466 F.2d 830, 848-852 (CA7) (Stevens, J., dissenting), cert. The voting age population of North Carolina is approximately 78% white, 20% black, and 1% Native American; the remaining 1% is predominantly Asian. Action verbs tell what the subject is doing or what is being done to the subject. They did not even claim to be white. They alleged that the two districts concentrated a majority of black voters arbitrarily without regard to considerations such as compactness, contiguousness, geographical boundaries, or political subdivisions, in order to create congressional districts along racial lines and to assure the election of two black representatives. to Juris. Lack of compactness or contiguity, like uncouth district lines, certainly is a helpful. H. Lefler & A. Newsom, The History of a Southern State: North Carolina 18-22 (3d ed. In particular, they have no bearing on whether the plan ultimately is found to violate the Constitution. Nor is it a particularly accurate description of what has occurred. given $1,000\$1,000$1,000 in food stamps to supplement his $1,000\$1,000$1,000 As the Court noted, the "inevitable effect of this redefinition of Tuskegee's boundaries" was "to deprive the Negro petitioners discriminatorily of the benefits of residence in Tuskegee." It is ironic that it does so when white voters challenge a law that would have North Carolina send a black representative to Congress for the first time since Reconstruction, here is no constitutional requirement of compactness or contiguity for districts. Petitioner Argument (Shaw) 1. Harry A. Blackmun Blackmun. The majority also rejected appellants' claim that North Carolina's reapportionment plan was impermissible. It does so by glossing over the striking similarities, focusing on surface differences, most notably the (admittedly unusual) shape of the newly created district, and imagining an entirely new cause of action. If, on remand, the allegations of a racial gerrymander are not contradicted, the District Court must determine whether the plan is narrowly tailored to further a compelling governmental interest. Newsom, the complaint nowhere alleges any type of stigmatic harm Stewart, J. joined. 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