SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
U.S. Supreme Court decision this week was the latest blow to the 1965 Voting Rights Act. There are at least 15 congressional districts where Black lawmakers could lose their seats due to the ruling. Louisiana suspended its House primaries, and yesterday, two more Republican-controlled states - Alabama and Tennessee - move toward redrawing congressional maps, but the ruling is also likely to shape voting for state-level offices. Mississippi has the largest percentage of Black voters in the country. At a special session later this month, state lawmakers will consider redrawing state Supreme Court districts. State Representative Kabir Karriem is chairman of Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus. He joins us now. Thanks for being with us.
KABIR KARRIEM: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for having me on your show.
SIMON: What was your reaction to the Supreme Court decision?
KARRIEM: Well, look, it's not like we didn't know it was coming down, but to be in this moment in history when that verdict came down yesterday was very stunning. It was shocking. And you couldn't help but think about those giants of individuals whose shoulders we all stand on who paid the ultimate sacrifice for me to even be in the legislature. And for that decision to come down like it did and the impact it's going to have on Black people is devastating.
SIMON: What about the argument - and I'm sure you've heard it - that the demographics in Mississippi are different today in 2026 than they were in the mid-1960s, and to achieve representation of a certain race is just wrong?
KARRIEM: Well, you know, I would differ with that argument. You know, people have died for us to have the right to vote. And in some instances, the South - particularly Mississippi - is still the same as it was in the '60s, the mindset and voter representation. So I would argue and differ with that opinion.
SIMON: The governor, Tate Reeves, is Republican, has called a special session of the Legislature a few weeks from now. What are you expecting?
KARRIEM: You know the governor has the discretion to - when he calls a special session, he has the discretion to put whatever he likes on the legislative agenda. After that ruling, everything is on the table, so we have to be prepared for everything.
SIMON: What effect do you believe this decision will have?
KARRIEM: Voting power, Black representation, not voting or not having someone to speak to the needs and concerns of your community and represent your interests. That's what the voting rights was all about. We just started having democracy in 1965. And here in Mississippi, we cannot tell you the number of bodies in the bottom of rivers and lakes, folks hung from trees, people shot, people dying just for us to have this right. And here we are in 2026 having discussion that should've been dealt with generations ago.
You know, I serve in a body where the first Black legislator was elected in 1967. He took his seat in 1968. His name was Robert G. Clark, and they would not even seat him. And when they did decide to seat him in 1968, they took his desk out the front door of the Capitol, and they sawed it half. And for eight years, he sat by himself as a Black caucus of one. Now, today, I am chairman of the caucus of 58, and we're still going through those same struggles. So he himself - our leader emeritus Robert G. Clark - is probably turning over in his grave right now with tears for us to be facing this particular fight and this decision that has just been rendered that will not only turn the clock back, but has the possibility of people who want to do ill will to this 40% of Black folks here in the state of Mississippi. They have an opportunity to do so with this decision by the U.S. Supreme Court.
SIMON: Bennie Thompson is currently the one Black member of Congress from Mississippi. He's a very noted legislator. Is his seat in trouble?
KARRIEM: I don't know, but we're going to fight with every resource to make sure that we fight and defend his congressional seat and representation. We should not even be having this conversation. Black folks have to have some sense of representation in the state of Mississippi, but they don't want us to have anything - any Black representation, Black voting power, nothing. And I think that's - I don't think that's proper. I don't think that's right.
SIMON: Mississippi State Representative Kabir Karriem speaking with us from the Statehouse in Jackson. Thank you so much for being with us, Representative.
KARRIEM: Thank you for the opportunity. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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