Demonstrators are asking companies based in Texas to oppose two bills dealing with "elections, including election integrity and security" in Texas.
Texas SB 7 would require voters to submit a doctor's note confirming a disability when applying for a mail-in ballot application. The measure would also require each polling location to have the same number of voting machines despite its size.
courtesy Alan Scaia
HB 6, which passed out of committee Thursday, would make it a felony for any county elections department to send a vote-by-mail application without it first being requested.
"No Jim Crow 2.0," demonstrators chanted outside AT&T headquarters in Downtown Dallas Thursday.
"Texas has a very long history of discrimination against voters of color," says activist Jane Hamilton.
Demonstrators say AT&T, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines and other companies based in Texas should take stronger stands to speak against the measures.
"The doors of justice are open. The doors to voting rights are open. The doors to liberty and justice for all are open," says Friendship West Baptist Church Pastor Frederick Haynes. "Come up out of those suites and come down to the streets and stand with us."
"We believe the right to vote is sacred and we support voting laws that make it easier for more Americans to vote in free, fair and secure elections. Easily accessible and secure voting is not only a precious right and responsibility, it's the single best way to ensure everyone's voice is heard," AT&T wrote in a statement.
After another protest in March, the Dallas County Republican Party said the measures only intend to protect the integrity of elections. In last year's primary, a state district judge ordered a recount when 9,149 ballots from 44 machines were found in Dallas County. The missed ballots did not alter the results of any race.
A federal judge ordered sweeps of postal service facilities after the November election, when 815 mail-in ballots were discovered at 14 facilities in Texas.
"We know there are problems with voting by mail," the Dallas County Republican Party's Busby said. "In Dallas County, just last fall, the elections administration couldn't keep an accurate count of applications received or ballots sent out. Some people never got ballots they requested. Others went to the wrong address. This bill simply upholds election integrity and restores the trust of people in our electoral system, which, as public servants, should be something we make sure is our top priority."
