“The Right to Vote: Old and New Challenges”

Professor Joseph Bagley will speak at the Transylvania County Library’s Rogow Room on Thursday, May 28, at 7 p.m., with a Q & A period following his talk.  Bagley, Associate Professor of History at Perimeter College of Georgia State University, will describe the growing threat to the foundation of our democracy: the right of every qualified citizen to vote without discrimination or needless barriers.

 Professor Bagley’s research area is the study of civil and voting rights litigation and the role of law in shaping 20th and 21st century political transformations. His “The Politics of White Rights: Race, Justice, and Integrating Alabama’s Schools” was published in 2018.  Widely praised, his book used Alabama as a case study to show the political patterns of  resistance by white Southern lawmakers who sought to limit the impact of the “Brown v. Board of Education” (1954) decision. While focused upon Alabama,  his work shows links between that first generation of politicians and the tactics later  politicians adapted to continue to resist desegregation.

The racial backlash has been aided by a series of Supreme Court decisions notably  “Washington v. Davis” (1976),  “Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP” (2024) and, most recently, “Louisiana v. Callais, et. al.”  The Court’s conservative majority now  requires lower courts to give extreme deference to political leaders who deny that their motives are racist, even when  their policies result in demonstrable racial discrimination.

Professor Bagley’s research and teaching has continued to expand, exploring the links between voter discrimination which has historically disenfranchised Black citizens and more recent practices that limit the voting power of  other groups. His second book, “Power, the Law, and the Franchise: The Long, Ongoing Voting Rights Struggle and Racial Politics in Alabama,” will be published next year.

            Admired for his teaching skills and knowledgeable background, Professor Bagley has been certified as an expert witness in several federal court cases involving voting rights, testifying and submitting reports for the court. He recently testified in a major North Carolina lawsuit brought by the State NAACP.  His testimony on behalf the plaintiffs supported a finding that the North Carolina’s GOP led  post-2020 redistricting plans would “result in an abridgement of the right of Black voters in North Carolina to participate in the political process and to equitably elect their candidates of choice.” A three-judge trial court, limited by the Supreme Court’s “deference” requirement, upheld the GOP majority’s redistricting plans late last year even though it is likely to have a negative effect upon African American voters in the state.

Professor Bagley’s  presentation is  the latest in a series of public talks and forums sponsored by the Transylvania Partners for Democracy (TPD) since a group of local residents formed the  organization in early 2024.  Transylvania Partners for Democracy does not endorse political candidates or parties, but—as we approach the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence—members of the TPD believe it is a  historical moment to reflect upon critical threats to our Constitution, our democracy and our civic and government institutions.

 Transylvania Partners for Democracy welcomes supporters and financial contributions from concerned citizens as we continue to schedule public speakers and community forums that explore those challenges to our democracy. 

This program is neither sponsored nor endorsed by the Transylvania County Library or Transylvania County Government.