The Voting Rights Act, passed in 1965, was groundbreaking civil rights legislation. The VRA’s purpose was to overcome the obstacles that states, counties, and cities put in place to keep Black Americans from exercising their right to vote, guaranteed by the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. What are the events that led to its passage? How did it try to end voting discrimination against voters in racial and language minority groups? What difference has it made, including in the 2020 election? And what does the future hold now that the U.S. Supreme Court has decided that some of its provisions are unconstitutional? Mitchell Hamline Law Professor Raleigh Levine’s presentation will examine the VRA, describe its history, and consider where it stands today and what might be next. Mitchell Hamline’s BLSA President, Aretha Haynes, will moderate a discussion following Professor Levine’s talk.

Raleigh Levine

Professor Raleigh Levine’s academic interests focus on the First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and press. Her passion for First Amendment rights stems from her pre-law school experience as a news editor and producer for CNN Headline News. After graduating with honors from Stanford Law School and clerking for the Ninth Circuit, she spent the first years of her legal career as a litigator specializing in speech and press issues, serving as an attorney for the Southern California ACLU and other public interest-oriented law firms. Her practice also involved significant litigation in Election Law, and her interest in that field, particularly in electoral speech issues, has heightened since she entered the legal academy. In addition to teaching, writing, and submitting amicus curiae briefs on First Amendment and Election Law topics on behalf of high-profile public interest organizations, she frequently serves as an expert on those issues for both local and national news media.

Aretha Haynes

Aretha Haynes is the current President of the Mitchell Hamline Black Law Student Association (BLSA). A winter 2021 graduate of the law school, Ms. Haynes is studying for the Georgia Bar examination even as she continues to serve as a volunteer on multiple boards and committees. Through her law school journey, she made the Dean’s List, participated in mock trial/moot court competitions, received the CALI award in family law, and won several scholarships. She is most proud of her volunteerism and, one day, plans to create her own Mobile Law Office to bring legal representation to underrepresented and marginalized communities.