Black Politics

Representation, Voting Rights, and Political Participation

The essence of democracy is representation. Commonly identified democratic principles, such as fair and open elections, full adult suffrage, and officials who are responsive to the citizenry, all rest on the assumption that a small group of elected leaders represents the interests of a larger constituency. The history of African American participation winds its way through 250 years of legalized slavery, another 100 years of legal oppression and segregation, and a continuing struggle for equal opportunity and dismantlement of racist stereotypes and attitudes. Within this context, black Americans have benefitted from increased representation in federal, state, and local public offices but have been hindered by the still disproportionately low levels of representation of black interests.

The number of black members of Congress has increased dramatically since 1980, and more striking gains in numbers of blacks holding political office have been made at the state and local levels. The gains at the federal level are partly a result of race-conscious districting. Because of the constitutional requirements mandating a decennial census and several Supreme Court decisions mandating congressional districts to be equally proportioned, the process of reapportionment and redistricting of boundaries for congressional seats is necessary. Some activists for minority interests have claimed that the creation of so-called majorityminority districts is the answer to minority representation in Congress. Others disagree.

Majority-minority districts virtually guarantee that nonwhite candidates will be elected to Congress. In fact, there have been only a few black members of Congress who have represented majority-white districts or states. But the creation of majority-minority districts means the decreased presence of racial minorities in all other districts. Some have argued that this creates a situation where white members of Congress no longer need to be responsive to minority interests. Others argue that reliance on race-conscious districting limits the potential influence of minority leaders, since the practice makes it quite difficult for a minority candidate to be elected in a majority-white [Page 140]district, essentially placing a limit on the number of minority members of Congress at any given point in time.

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