US civil rights leaders plan march on Washington for voting protections
A coalition of civil rights groups, led by Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network, has announced a march on Washington on August 28 to demand voting protections following Supreme Court rulings that weakened the Voting Rights Act.
Reverend Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, along with Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, and several other civil rights organizations, have announced a march on Washington scheduled for August 28. The action, dubbed "March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote," will take place on the 63rd anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
Martin Luther King III stated that defending the vote means defending the foundation of democracy. He emphasized that 63 years after his father stood at the Lincoln Memorial, they are called to march again not only in remembrance but in action.
In April, the Supreme Court struck down Louisiana’s congressional map and substantially rewrote Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, dismantling key protections against racial gerrymandering. Organizers told the Associated Press that the decision has intensified a long-running fight over Black political representation.
Several states have begun redrawing congressional maps following the April ruling. In Alabama, judges upheld a redistricting process that will eliminate one of the state’s two majority-Black districts in the upcoming midterm elections, defying earlier court orders.
The Trump administration has pursued additional measures to restrict voting access, including new proof of citizenship requirements and unprecedented restrictions on mail-in ballots. A proposal to allow the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies access to state voter lists has also been floated. So far, federal judges have blocked both the citizenship requirement and the mail-in ballot restrictions.
The coalition includes Representative Yvette Clarke, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, as well as the Drum Major Institute, the American Federation of Teachers, the American Federation of Government Employees, the NAACP, the National Council of Negro Women, the National Urban League, the League of United Latin American Citizens, and the Working Families Party.
