Brentin Mock writes at Colorlines that this year congressional leaders are likely to restore protections to the Voting Rights Act, which was gutted by the Supreme Court this summer. The speculation comes amid a series of hearings, meetings and verbal commitments from congressional members and civic leaders, he writes. A few weeks ago Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, a…

At Colorlines, Brentin Mock writes that the only good news about Florida’s colorblind trial against George Zimmerman is that it now allows the U.S. Department of Justice, which has broader resources and authority, to build a stronger case against the former neighborhood-watch captain without excluding race. Veteran civil rights attorneys and advocates are convinced that…

The GOP’s allegations of voter fraud in South Carolina, including claims of “zombie” voting, were debunked by findings in a recent report, ColorLines‘ Brentin Mock reports. As reported by Corey Hutchins in the Columbia Free Times, state Rep. Alan Clemmons, a Horry County Republican, ran with Shwedo’s unsubstantiated claim, telling the public, “We must have certainty in…

Colorlines‘ Brentin Mock says a Justice Department agreement will decrease excessive suspensions and expulsions of mostly young black students for trivial infractions like wearing the wrong colored socks. The sealing of the school-to-prison pipeline in Meridian, Miss. has officially started after a U.S. District Court judge approved what the Department of Justice is calling “a…

In a piece for Colorlines, Brentin Mock places the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of Tea Party groups in historical context. It’s interesting to note how non-profits became forbidden from political campaign activity to begin with. For that, look back to Lyndon B. Johnson, the U.S. President who helped usher in the Voting Rights Act and…

Brentin Mock writes at Colorlines about journalist and documentarian Deborah “Big Red” Cotton, who has expressed her concern about New Orleans violence and also her compassion and love for black men in the city, who are too often the perpetrators and victims of that violence. Journalist and documentarian Deborah “Big Red” Cotton was one of…

Colorlines‘ Brentin Mock presents his own research to challenge the claim by The Root’s Keli Goff that voting-rights and affirmative action coverage suffered because of journalists’ focus on marriage equality.  … Keli Goff, a columnist for The Root, argued that voting rights and affirmative action was suffering a “media shutout” at the expense of marriage…

Gawker contributor Brentin Mock shares a personal story about the human cost of fracking in states like Texas. Obama gave considerable attention to developing natural gas, which he called a “bridge fuel.” This bridge was not entirely dirty, but it wasn’t all that clean either. The discovery of rock shale gas deposits under our feet,…

Colorlines‘ Brentin Mock breaks down what he says is a case of election losers having decided that they are going to hate the player and the game. Virginia Republicans have been busy since Election Day — working to make sure voters of color don’t have another opportunity to impact state politics as dramatically as they…

After working to suppress the vote during the 2012 presidential election, the True the Vote organization, writes Brentin Mock in Colorlines, has merely changed its strategy. This year they’ve jumped off with two new groups: True the Vote NOW: A new initiative described as: “We promote ideas that actively protect the rights of legitimate voters,…