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because of safety concerns stiewrnts knew i they were in a safe passage. through a a high crime area. for more go to al jazeera.com. we are back. 50 years after the march on washington where it stands on central goals, the right to vote

â [music] welcome. in 1963 dr. martin luther king called for racial justice and equality. >> i gave blood on that bridge in alabama. i will not stand by while they take the right to vote away from us. this summer the supreme court struck down and there will be

tighter voting laws. >> voting rights is really -- when we look at the right to vote. it is the avenue for which we show we care if we care about criminal justice issues it is a at the ballot we can voice our opinion of issues. it essentially mutes americans to speak on the other issues. >> i heard from a lot of african/americans that they care

about, one was the travon martin voter. >> all generations and all demographics. this attack on voting rights we are are seeing across the demographics that care about this issue. inspirational photos that came from washington. young people we see who are there and think the issues are extremeliy important. it speaks to the desire of americans to fight for this fundamental right that is a part

of the values of our democracy. >> young americans didn't experience what it was like to grow up. of the are young people -- do young people take it for granted? >> i think they do. when we look at young people who are flooding to ensure their voting rights are not further suppressed. the movement that took place 50 years ago we for a similar

situation. a lot has changed, but yet a lot is the same. we need to ensure we take mea these moments and build on them. >> where do you go? voter i.d.s and rights. what do you do to get people out to vote? >> it is vital congress uses its authority and get protections for the voters in our country.

>> for more on voter laws we talk to a distinguished professor. of we have law professor spencer overton. first, just over two months ago in a 5-4 decision the court require states and regions with a history of discrimination to get approval before changing their voting laws. texas announced a voighte voter i.d. law? the justice department sued texas over the law.

why was the voting rights act passed? >> in response to a civil rights movement that said w the right to vote is fundamental in a democracy. it rectified acts of discrimination in which african/american were denied the right to vote and protect the rights. to on be able to participate effectively.

pand you refer to act that required for southern states. >> take us into the present day. the. >> some sections are and don't want people to be denied to vote base based on race or any other kik characteristics. of section three, if there is a systematic, federal courts can fashion remedies. it is out moded because jim cr

crowe with the temporary pro?rigz 1965 thankfully are no longer there. >> talk about sections 4 and 5. >> we are missing a lot. discrimination persists a texas jurisdiction. they are required to provide bilingual and had them at no polling places. said let's keep a galling

referendum off the ballot & the large turn out of african/american and latinos can stimulate discrimination. ful once the latino population grew the county officials made sure they would not be on county commission. did costsa a lot of money and takes years thi don't have time and rey sources to stop the lawsuits. of the.

>> states have rights to regulate elections. wil elections most laws are administratorrered across the nation. here in the united states, the problem is we want officials they do it to benefit themselves to stay in office. >> let's get a reaction from you. >> we don't need deviation the section five represented.

if he is successful the department of justice might join against north carolina reform. if he doesn't prove racial discrimination, it is even stroker show that section 5 is no longer needed. >> what does it mean for people trying to go to the polls? ... s

...

>> welcome back.

you're watching inside story. martin luther king supporters say the task is not done. ocritics say it is easier than ever for states with a history of racial discrimination to put in place restrictions. voters cannot cast a ballot without showing a photo i.d. texas has passed a strict photo i.d. and is being challenged by the justice department. department.

a government issued photo i.d. and ends same day registration. registration. first, as we have set this up we are talking about restrictive. >> it's the ballot and the measure. people need to have legitimate elections and voter i.d. some states have it, canada, germany, holabdomen, switzerland. this should not be controversial to showio show your i.d.

the most basic thing we can demand is to check they are who they say they are. if they can't get the i.d., that's the problem. >> texas and north carolina are examples, it was found it was discrimin tory and twice as likely not to have an i.d. the courts found you could get a carry to conceal license but not an i.d. >> early voting and cutting down on the number of days people can vote.

it cuts out some -- register to before they are 18 to vote when they hit that milestone. >> impersonataing someone else and sneaking into the polls, none of these laws touch on absentee ballots. with a host of measures just not voter i.d.es they are trying to limit the vote heavily minority, less affluent and young.

it has nothing to do with voter integrity and has everything to do with politics. they are those who are least likely to have the kinds of i.d.s. >> i want to get your response and talk about the other aspects. young peopley to vote on college campuses. >> very cynical attitude coming here. these were to regularize the election process. voter closer to the election d

day. same day re registration, like new york does not have same day registration. north carolina is allowing the same number of days. student i.d. or young people, picture i.d.es are not controlled by anyone. you should have a lot of different kinds of -- a case john paul stevens indiana's voter i.d. you can't burden people's ability to vote but you can make elections clean.

>> government manipulating rules to infringe. we want government of, by and for the people, these laws shape who turns up to vote. we have talked about statewide laws, but they are just the tip of the iceberg. local voters look the resources to sue and important because often ignores. you have local officials trying to keep power.

>> to the argument there should be what the rules are. >> supporting all these imposed restrictions. i don't think uniform federal election laws it has nothing to do with the integrity of the vote. >> it happens more often with absentees. but it does happen. >> still to come, we'lly take a look at what is happeninga to

the laws and what is the best way forward.

jo welcome back to inside

story. president obama vowed his administration would do everything in its power to have fair voting laws. in a debate that can be deputy is well under way. i want to give you a chance to jump in here. how will you measure success? >> i agree with president obama we need to have fair and free elections. the justice department and lawyers freed should know

fanning out across the country to incidences and filing lawsuits. each state has to figure out how they want to conduct their voting. new york does not allow any same day rentalistration and absentee ballots should be tightened. >> for me success the invitation the supreme court gave to congress to update so areas with

recent voting violations are precluded. so it's more effective, efficient and less costly. we need some kind of tranc transparancy. it deters a lot of bad activity. >> the supreme court did not strike down section 5. congress can come up with a new formula. success be measured by the

expansion of our democracy. the real problem is people don't vote. i would measure success not as a restriction but an expansion. >> thank you for your time. you can keep the conversation going by logging on to our facebook. thank you for watching.

see you shortly. ♪