Aux Etats-Unis, le droit de vote des Noirs reste un problème d'actualité... (21/01/01)

Aux Etats-Unis, le Ministère de la Justice (administration Clinton) a décidé il y a quelques jours de poursuivre le Comté de Charleston (Caroline du Sud) parce qu'il estime que le mode de scrutin y est défavorable aux Noirs. Ce comté a un système électoral de "at-large voting", c'est-à-dire que les candidats pour l'ensemble des neuf sièges y sont élus au niveau du comté, alors que la règle pour la plupart des élections américaines est celle de la circonscription uninominale à scrutin majoritaire. D'après le Ministère, ce système, combiné à un vote "racialement polarisé", diluerait le vote noir et violerait par conséquent le Voting Rights Act de 1965, l'élément-clé de la législation américaine donnant aux Noirs le même droit de vote qu'aux Blancs.

Rappelons à cette occasion que les discriminations électorales envers les Noirs ont resurgi dans l'actualité politique à l'occasion de l'élection présidentielle en Floride, où il est apparu que de nombreux électeurs noirs ont été privés du droit de vote par diverses méthodes, y compris l'intimidation brutale de la part de la police dans certains bureaux de vote. Un de ces méthodes est la privation du droit de vote suite à une condamnation judiciaire, qui a été très largement étendue par l'administration républicaine en Floride puisque des personnes ayant été condamnées pour des infractions au code de la route ont été éliminées des listes d'électeurs. Chaque Etat est libre d'adopter des règlementations différentes sur ce point.

Dans une tribune libre publiée par le New York Times quelques jours avant la fin de son mandat, le Président Clinton a lancé un appel pour une réforme électorale:

"(...) The struggle for equal justice in America also includes the struggle for voting rights. In the presidential election of 2000, too many people felt the votes they cast were not counted, and some felt there were organized efforts to keep them from the polls.

We must do more to ensure that more people vote and that every vote is counted. To that end, I urge the new administration to appoint a nonpartisan presidential commission on electoral reform, headed by distinguished citizens like former presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. Such a commission should gather facts and determine the causes — in every state — of voting disparities, including those involving race, class and ethnicity. It should make recommendations to Congress about how to achieve fair, inclusive and uniform standards for voting and vote counting. It should also work to prevent voter suppression and intimidation and to increase voter participation.

Here are two places to start: We should make Election Day a national holiday. And it is long past time to give back the right to vote to ex-offenders who have paid their debts to society." William Jefferson Clinton (42nd president), "Erasing America's Color Lines", New York Times, January 14, 2001

liens utiles:

dossier spécial du New York Times, "How race is lived in America", en particulier Timothy Egan, " When to Campaign With Color", June 20, 2000 (An Asian-American Told His Story to Whites and Won. For Black Politicians, It's a Riskier Strategy. )

ABCNEWS.com : Black Voters Allege Irregularities in Florida
- This presidential election was the first in which Chonchitia Mitchell was eligible to vote.
http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/dailynews/election_blackvoters001129.html

ABCNEWS.com : Jesse Jackson Calls for Vote Investigation
- The Rev. Jesse Jackson urged the federal Department of Justice today to investigate alleged voting irregularities in Florida, telling a crowd of riled-up Democrats ...
http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/dailynews/ election_race001129.html

ABCNEWS.com : Justice Dept. Checking Vote Bias Claims
- Justice Department representatives arrived in Florida today to look into allegations that some blacks there were deprived of their right to vote in the ...
http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/dailynews/ election_blackvote001203.html

ABCNEWS.com : Federal Probe of Florida Vote Due Friday
- The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is taking up the question of whether black voters in Florida were denied their right to vote because of intimidation, discrimination, ...
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/ election_race001207.html

ABCNEWS.com : Federal Probe of Florida Vote Due Today
- The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is taking up the question of whether black voters in Florida were denied their right to vote because of intimidation, discrimination, ...
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/_election_race001208.htmlhttp://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/election_race001208.html

ABCNEWS.com : Groups Call Interior Pick 'Racially Insensitive'
- Interior Secretary-designate Gale Norton is facing a new controversy today over past remarks on slavery, as Democratic-leaning special interest groups wage a second ...
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/Cabinet010111.html

ABCNEWS.com : Gore Addresses NAACP Convention
- Vice President Al Gore delivered a spirited, preacher-like speech to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People today, accusing his Republican rival, Texas. ...
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/ Gore_NAACP000712.html

processus de démocratisation aux Etats-Unis