please a discussion answer WITH 5-6 SENTENCES ( PARAGRAPH)

THE IDEA ABOUT VOTING IN TEXAS

Texas (and the UnitedStates) has come a long way in its history when viewing who hasaccess to the voting booth. When Texas joined the United States in1845, voting was largely limited to white males who owned property.It took over a century for the ballot box to become much moredemocratic and inclusive thanks to many changes at the state andfederal level. Over this time a number of obstacles were put inplace (some overcome) limiting who could vote. For example,

1848 The end of theMexican-American War guaranteed Mexicans in Texas (also Arizona,California, New Mexico, & Nevada) US citizenship andrecognition of Mexican land deeds ensuring the right to vote.However, voting was often denied due to language requirements andthe failure to protect land deeds issued inSpanish.  

1856 Propertyrequirements were abolished for voting, but due to a number ofother restrictions put in place to keep minority males from voting,only white men benefited from this change.

1866 Native Americanswere given US citizenship, but not the right to vote until1957.

1919 Texas ratifiedthe 19th Amendment to the US Constitution allowing women to votefor the first time in Texas.

See your textbook fora number of specific ways voting was limited to individuals andgroups to read in depth.

By 1965 with thepassage of the national Voting Rights Act, most obstacles to votingwill be abolished. With this new law, the federal government nowhad the power to step in when local and state elections showedevidence of discrimination. Because of continued discrimination,special provisions in the new federal law were extended in 1970,1975, 1982, 1992 and in 2006.

However in ShelbyCounty v. Holder (2013) the Supreme Court in a controversial 5-4vote declared 2 key provisions of the Voting Rights Actunconstitutional. Within hours of the decision Texas officialspledged to enforce a photo ID law to vote that had not been clearedby the Justice department. A handful of other states followed.

The push for photo IDlaws for voting actually began in the late 20th century byRepublican party members claiming voter fraud. Today 12 states havea form of photo id law on the books. Critics claim these laws arerestrictive and prevent free access to the ballot.

In 2016, a federalcourt put a hold on the Texas photo ID law until future notice asthe case over its use makes its way through the court system. (seelink below for the current law and a statement how how it ismodified due to this ruling)

In this discussionboard, you will research the pros and cons of a photo id law inTexas and put forth a detailed and supported position on the issueby addressing the question below. Please note that much of thisdebate falls along partisan lines. Political language may interferewith your ability to think critically. Bias is not the problem, butfailure to recognize it or failure to use factual evidence tosupport your position is.

To begin thisassignment, you will want to read chapter 4 so you understand theprocess of voting and elections in Texas. From that point beginresearch the topic of photo ID for voting. You can use all sourcesrelated to Texas, other states and the nation as a whole. I've alsogiven you a few sources below to help you get started.

Once you have writtenyour response post (keep in mind you will not be able to readanyone's post on the board until you post yours) post your responsepost on the discussion board no later than THURSDAY night at11:59PM. Once you have posted you can begin engaging in thediscussion with your classmates through Saturday night when theunit closes. Reread the instructions for how to maximize yourpoints in the syllabus.

Respond to thisstatement: Photo ID laws for voting serve a similar purpose asother historical roadblocks such as literacy tests and poll taxesto restrict certain groups from voting and are, therefore,unconstitutional.

Don't forgetcitations, links and other supporting evidence to include in yourwork on the board.

-https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/02/after-50-years-the-voting-rights-acts-biggest-threat-the-supreme-court/273257/

-https://www.oyez.org/cases/2012/12-96

-https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/voter-fraud

-http://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/heritage-explains/voter-fraud