This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The news media are feverishly reporting on Donald Trump Jr.'s email scandal, but this apparent collusion isn't the threat to our electoral politics we should be breathlessly addressing; America is in the midst of the most sustained attempt at voter suppression since Jim Crow.
In 2016, nearly 16 million Americans faced difficulties voting, some for nefarious reasons and others innocuous. The problem is that the amount of nefarious reasons is increasing exponentially. This year, 31 states have tried to make voting harder through voter ID laws, reducing polling locations and early voting or relying on outdated and potentially insecure electronic voting machines. Ten states have already given up on the idea of rehabilitation and have barred felons from voting entirely. Since November, we've had an administration that peddles fictitious voting fraud allegations and is beholden to interests that do not want all Americans to vote.
Supposedly we are the world's foremost representative democracy, but recently we've done more to restrain the voice of the public at large than to strengthen it. From Citizens United to gutting the Voting Rights Act to Trump's Election Commission, we have distanced ourselves further from our ideals and gotten closer to minority rule at the majority's expense.
Jason Chandler
Salt Lake City