TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE COALITION LAUNCHES FOOTSOLDIERS PROJECT TO DEFEND THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT
WASHINGTON, DC, DC, UNITED STATES, September 24, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- On Wednesday, September 24, 2025, the Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) will launch the Voting Rights Act Foot Soldiers’ Project, a national initiative to organize, uplift, and amplify the voices of those who risked their lives for the right to vote—and who now face a renewed battle against voter suppression.
Sixty years after the historic march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the Foot Soldiers of 1965 are once again rising to defend democracy. With original Foot Soldiers in attendance, TJC will host a reception highlighting their experiences while announcing a new initiative to ensure their sacrifices were not in vain. Central to this effort is the urgent defense of the private right of action under the Voting Rights Act—a legal safeguard now under direct threat.
At the heart of the fight are several cases that are pending before the Supreme Court which may strip away the right of private citizens and civil rights organizations to bring voting rights lawsuits. This would mean that only the Department of Justice would have the power to file lawsuits for violations of voting rights. It should be noted that more than 90% of all voting rights cases have been filed by private parties—not the Department of Justice. If the Supreme Court upholds this restriction on the private right of action, only one person—Trump-appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi—would decide whether to bring Section 2 voting rights cases. Given the current Justice Department’s demonstrated disregard for communities of color, empowering Pam Bondi to decide what violations of voting rights merit court consideration would unquestionably result in the suppression of voting rights for Voters of Color.
“These cases could slam shut the courthouse doors for millions of voters,” said Barbara Arnwine, Esq., President and Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition. “Without the private right of action, whether it’s a noose hanging at a Black polling site, missing ramps for disabled voters, racially gerrymandered maps, or ballots offered only in English, communities will be at the mercy of political appointees. That is not democracy. That is disenfranchisement.”
“As Chairman, I can tell you this fight is personal and generational,” said Daryl D. Jones, Chairman of the Board of the Transformative Justice Coalition. “The FootSoldiers of Selma handed us the baton of democracy, and it is our sacred duty to carry it forward. The courts should not become a weapon to silence the very people whose sacrifices gave us the Voting Rights Act. If the courthouse doors are closed to the people, then justice is closed to the people.”
EVENT DETAILS
What: THE FIGHT AIN’T OVER: Transformative Justice Coalition Launches FootSoldiers Project to Defend the Voting Rights Act
Who:
• Barbara Arnwine, Esq., Founder/President/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition
• Daryl D. Jones, Esq., Board Chair/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition
• A. Scott Bolden, Esq., Partner, Reed Smith/Trustee, Morehouse College
• Betty Boynton, FootSoldier
When: Wednesday, September 24, 2025, 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Where: Reed Smith LLP
1300 K Street NW, Suite 1100E
Washington, DC 20005
ALL ARE WELCOME
###
Founded in 2015 by Barbara Arnwine, president emeritus of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, the Transformative Justice Coalition seeks to be a catalyst for transformative institutional changes that bring about justice and equality in the United States and abroad. Learn more at tjcoalition.org.
Sixty years after the historic march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the Foot Soldiers of 1965 are once again rising to defend democracy. With original Foot Soldiers in attendance, TJC will host a reception highlighting their experiences while announcing a new initiative to ensure their sacrifices were not in vain. Central to this effort is the urgent defense of the private right of action under the Voting Rights Act—a legal safeguard now under direct threat.
At the heart of the fight are several cases that are pending before the Supreme Court which may strip away the right of private citizens and civil rights organizations to bring voting rights lawsuits. This would mean that only the Department of Justice would have the power to file lawsuits for violations of voting rights. It should be noted that more than 90% of all voting rights cases have been filed by private parties—not the Department of Justice. If the Supreme Court upholds this restriction on the private right of action, only one person—Trump-appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi—would decide whether to bring Section 2 voting rights cases. Given the current Justice Department’s demonstrated disregard for communities of color, empowering Pam Bondi to decide what violations of voting rights merit court consideration would unquestionably result in the suppression of voting rights for Voters of Color.
“These cases could slam shut the courthouse doors for millions of voters,” said Barbara Arnwine, Esq., President and Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition. “Without the private right of action, whether it’s a noose hanging at a Black polling site, missing ramps for disabled voters, racially gerrymandered maps, or ballots offered only in English, communities will be at the mercy of political appointees. That is not democracy. That is disenfranchisement.”
“As Chairman, I can tell you this fight is personal and generational,” said Daryl D. Jones, Chairman of the Board of the Transformative Justice Coalition. “The FootSoldiers of Selma handed us the baton of democracy, and it is our sacred duty to carry it forward. The courts should not become a weapon to silence the very people whose sacrifices gave us the Voting Rights Act. If the courthouse doors are closed to the people, then justice is closed to the people.”
EVENT DETAILS
What: THE FIGHT AIN’T OVER: Transformative Justice Coalition Launches FootSoldiers Project to Defend the Voting Rights Act
Who:
• Barbara Arnwine, Esq., Founder/President/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition
• Daryl D. Jones, Esq., Board Chair/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition
• A. Scott Bolden, Esq., Partner, Reed Smith/Trustee, Morehouse College
• Betty Boynton, FootSoldier
When: Wednesday, September 24, 2025, 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Where: Reed Smith LLP
1300 K Street NW, Suite 1100E
Washington, DC 20005
ALL ARE WELCOME
###
Founded in 2015 by Barbara Arnwine, president emeritus of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, the Transformative Justice Coalition seeks to be a catalyst for transformative institutional changes that bring about justice and equality in the United States and abroad. Learn more at tjcoalition.org.
Barbara Arnwine
TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE COALITION
+1 202-359-9864
barnwine@tjcoalition.org
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