Two Black voters–Rodney D. Pierce and Moses Mathews–challenge new NC maps in federal court for racial discrimination.

Two Black voters of northeastern North Carolina have filed the first court challenge against the gerrymandered new North Carolina legislative district maps.

The voters filed the case last week in federal court, asserting that the maps are racially discriminatory under the Voting Rights Act. In particular, their suit asserts the Senate maps deliberately dilute Black votes by the ‘cracking and packing’ technique. That’s a process of drawing lines so as to pack a high number of Black voters into one district and draw them out of other districts where they could make a wider impact. This ultimately dilutes NC Black voices on issues they care about. The lawsuit asks the Court to put the NC Senate contests on hold and require the drawing of a new, non-discriminatory Senate districts map. 

For further reading, find the full filing with detailed factual assertions and legal claims here. A hearing on the request for an immediate injunction against the elections proceeding could be held as early as this week. While this case targets only the NC Senate contests, the State Senate Minority Leader, Senator Dan Blue, said, “You can rest assured other lawsuits are coming with much broader attacks on this redistricting plan.”

Why does this matter for the environment?

To protect the environment, we need to protect our democracy. Black, Brown, Indigenous and other disenfranchised groups suffer more environmental injustices than white and/or wealthy communities. Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities continually advocate for better environmental policies, yet the Republican legislature continually dilute their voices.

Only when the legislature reflects these North Carolinians’ voices can we better protect our air, our water, and our land. Read our statement on these overwhelmingly gerrymandered and unconstitutional maps here.