Full Impact of ALEC Ghostwriting Efforts Still Unknown; ALEC Should Work to Limit Damage
New York, NY (April 17, 2012) -- President and CEO of the National Urban League, Marc H. Morial, today issued the following statement regarding the announcement by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) that the group would disband its Public Safety and Elections task forces.
“Now that ALEC has acknowledged that their activities led them far beyond the bounds of reasonable commercial legislative activity, we call upon them to devote their considerable resources to redress the harms caused by the “Public Safety” and Elections task forces—dangerous policies that armed civilian vigilantes and disenfranchised seniors, people of color and the disabled by the millions.”
“The full impact of these measures has only begun to be felt. For example, laws that restrict voting access are still in the pipeline in many states. A simple disavowal of their misguided activities will be insufficient to correct the damage they have caused. We call upon ALEC to lead the charge on our campaign to reform or repeal these laws.”
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About the National Urban League
The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities. Founded in 1910 and headquartered in New York City, the National Urban League spearheads the efforts of its local affiliates through the development of direct service programs; and through the public policy research and advocacy activities of the National Urban League Policy Institute in Washington, DC. Today, there are nearly 100 local Urban League affiliates in 36 states and the District of Columbia, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than 2 million people nationwide.
