Suppress the Vote?

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http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/16/opinion/16herbert.html?th

 

August 16, 2004

OP-ED COLUMNIST

 

Suppress the Vote?

By BOB HERBERT

 

The big story out of Florida over the weekend was the

tragic devastation caused by Hurricane Charley. But

there's another story from Florida that deserves our

attention.

 

State police officers have gone into the homes of

elderly black voters in Orlando and interrogated them

as part of an odd " investigation " that has frightened

many voters, intimidated elderly volunteers and thrown

a chill over efforts to get out the black vote in

November.

 

The officers, from the Florida Department of Law

Enforcement, which reports to Gov. Jeb Bush, say they

are investigating allegations of voter fraud that came

up during the Orlando mayoral election in March.

 

Officials refused to discuss details of the

investigation, other than to say that absentee ballots

are involved. They said they had no idea when the

investigation might end, and acknowledged that it may

continue right through the presidential election.

 

" We did a preliminary inquiry into those allegations

and then we concluded that there was enough evidence

to follow through with a full criminal investigation, "

said Geo Morales, a spokesman for the Department of

Law Enforcement.

 

The state police officers, armed and in plain clothes,

have questioned dozens of voters in their homes. Some

of those questioned have been volunteers in

get-out-the-vote campaigns.

 

I asked Mr. Morales in a telephone conversation to

tell me what criminal activity had taken place.

 

" I can't talk about that, " he said.

 

I asked if all the people interrogated were black.

 

" Well, mainly it was a black neighborhood we were

looking at - yes,'' he said.

 

He also said, " Most of them were elderly. "

 

When I asked why, he said, " That's just the people we

selected out of a random sample to interview. "

 

Back in the bad old days, some decades ago, when

Southern whites used every imaginable form of

chicanery to prevent blacks from voting, blacks often

fought back by creating voters leagues, which were

organizations that helped to register, educate and

encourage black voters. It became a tradition that

continues in many places, including Florida, today.

 

Not surprisingly, many of the elderly black voters who

found themselves face to face with state police

officers in Orlando are members of the Orlando League

of Voters, which has been very successful in

mobilizing the city's black vote.

 

The president of the Orlando League of Voters is Ezzie

Thomas, who is 73 years old. With his demonstrated

ability to deliver the black vote in Orlando, Mr.

Thomas is a tempting target for supporters of George

W. Bush in a state in which the black vote may well

spell the difference between victory and defeat.

 

The vile smell of voter suppression is all over this

so-called investigation by the Florida Department of

Law Enforcement.

 

Joseph Egan, an Orlando lawyer who represents Mr.

Thomas, said: " The Voters League has workers who go

into the community to do voter registration, drive

people to the polls and help with absentee ballots.

They are elderly women mostly. They get paid like $100

for four or five months' work, just to offset things

like the cost of their gas. They see this political

activity as an important contribution to their

community. Some of the people in the community had

never cast a ballot until the league came to their

door and encouraged them to vote. "

 

Now, said Mr. Egan, the fear generated by state police

officers going into people's homes as part of an

ongoing criminal investigation related to voting is

threatening to undo much of the good work of the

league. He said, " One woman asked me, 'Am I going to

go to jail now because I voted by absentee ballot?' "

 

According to Mr. Egan, " People who have voted by

absentee ballot for years are refusing to allow

campaign workers to come to their homes. And

volunteers who have participated for years in

assisting people, particularly the elderly or

handicapped, are scared and don't want to risk a

criminal investigation. "

 

Florida is a state that's very much in play in the

presidential election, with some polls showing John

Kerry in the lead. A heavy-handed state police

investigation that throws a blanket of fear over

thousands of black voters can only help President

Bush.

 

The long and ugly tradition of suppressing the black

vote is alive and thriving in the Sunshine State.

 

Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company |