Critics of proposed new voter photo ID law vowed Thursday to launch a vigorous effort to fight the proposal, saying it amounted to a 21st century version of the poll tax used to keep blacks from voting.
The state NAACP lead a coalition of groups said they planned to contest a voter ID bill in the legislature even though it is clear that the Republican majority has the votes to pass it and that GOP Gov. Pat McCrory has said he will sign it.
“We will fight them in the courts, we fight them in the streets, and voters will fight them by turning out and voting,” said Penda Hair, co-director of the Advancement Project, a major national civil rights group that is legally challenging voter ID laws across the country. She described North Carolina as “ground zero” in the national fight.
