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Alabama is in the process of redrawing its congressional maps after a historic and surprising 5-4 Supreme Court ruling in Allen v Milligan, formerly known as Merrill v. Milligan. The high court concluded that Alabama’s 2021 redistricting plan for its seven seats in the U.S. House of Representatives likely violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

Following the ruling, plaintiffs from the case released a joint comment:
Photo courtesy: Supremecourt.gov
“In 2021, Alabama lawmakers targeted Black voters by packing and cracking us so we could not have a meaningful impact on the electoral process. They attempted to redefine Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and shirk their responsibility to ensure communities of color are given an equal opportunity to elect their preferred candidates. Today, the Supreme Court reminded them of that responsibility by affirming the district court’s order that a new map be drawn that complies with federal law – one that recognizes the diversity in our state rather than erasing it. This fight was won through generations of Black leaders who refused to be silent, and while much work is left, today we can move forward with these reaffirmed protections civil rights leaders fought and died for.”

On the heels of this victory comes another, as the Supreme Court recently ruled to also allow the Louisiana congressional map to be redrawn to add another majority-Black district as well.
1960 Alabama Redistricting Case
>>> Scroll down and click the video/audio clips along the way for a glimpse into
Tuskegee's historic involvement in gerrymandering issues. <<<
Who is Dr. Charles G. Gomillion?

A longtime Tuskegee Institute professor and civil rights activist. More notably, Dr. Gomillion was the lead plaintiff in the landmark case Gomillion v. Lightfoot, which lead the Supreme Court to declare racial gerrymandering unconstitutional in the city of Tuskegee.

In a video produced by the University of Alabama Center for Public Television, hear Dr. Gomillion share his reason for moving from South Carolina to teach at Tuskegee Institute in 1928.
The push for more black voters in the city of Tuskegee

Following World War II, the number of black registered voters in Tuskegee surged. This was in large part due to the expansion of the Tuskegee Institute. Dr. Gomillion was a driving force in what became the Tuskegee Civic Association (TCA), which actively encouraged black voter registration. 

In an interview conducted in the Hardy T. Frye Oral History Collection, hear Dr. Gomillion talk about their efforts, including hurdles and obstacles they faced along the way.
New legislation dramatically withdraws Tuskegee city limits

Thanks to the Tuskegee University Archives, you can listen in on this riveting and historic mass meeting called on July 2, 1957 by the TCA. The meeting was in response to new legislation that redrew the Tuskegee city limits, in order to gerrymander most of the registered black voters out of the city. At the moment of crisis, these historic speeches by Dr. Gomillion, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other leaders urged the community to "get in it," and called for endurance and unity in the struggles to overturn the legislation and to end second-class citizenship in Macon County.
How the redrawing of Tuskegee's electoral district boundaries violated the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments

In response to the new legislation, black residents mounted a selective buying campaign with citizens encouraged to trade with their friends. TCA sponsored the filing of the lawsuit, Gomillion v. Lightfoot. Although dismissed in the lower Court, the case eventually made its way to the highest Court in the land.

Take a listen inside the courtroom of the United States Supreme Court as lead counsels Fred D. Gray and Robert L. Carter began oral arguments on October 18, 1960.
Unanimous decision for Gomillion v. Lightfoot

In a landmark 9-0 ruling, the Supreme Court held that the Alabama legislature violated the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, a ruling that would lay the foundation for the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which outlawed discriminatory voting practices. 

Years later in an interview as part of the Hardy T. Frye Oral History Collection, when asked about what effect he feels this win had on "Alabama black politics," Dr. Gomillion stated:

"After the Gomillion v. Lightfoot case was finally decided then the Baker v. Carr case [in Tennessee] which led up to reapportionment and redistricting and so on, so I think it's had an indirect effect, well, in the South, if not throughout the nation."
President's Note: July 2023
"It was on a warm May morning in 1959, I stood before the United States Supreme Court to argue a case that challenged Alabama Legislature’s gerrymandering of Tuskegee for the purpose of denying blacks the right to vote, Gomillion v. Lightfoot. Before I could get started, Justice Frankfurter, who we feared would rule against us in this case because of one of his earlier cases, asked me to explain the map on display."
Exciting New Things Happening Soon
In Tuskegee
Thanks to a grant awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), there are exciting new programs coming to Tuskegee, including a new Center volunteer and intern program.

"As pillars of our communities, libraries and museums bring people together by providing important programs, services, and collections," said IMLS Director Crosby Kemper. "These institutions are trusted spaces where people can learn, explore and grow. IMLS is proud to support their initiatives through our grants as they educate and enhance their communities."

If you'd like to volunteer or learn more about lending a helping hand at the Center, click below.
Thank you!
Show Your Support
Thank you to our dedicated volunteers, donors and supporters. If you'd like to join our mission to preserve Tuskegee, Macon County, Alabama and American history, you can do so by selecting one of the options below to give a tax-deductible donation:
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Using your mobile phone, text the keyword "TUSKEGEE" to 844-970-1881
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Tuskegee History Center
P.O. Box 830768
104 S. Elm Street
Tuskegee, AL 36083 
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The Tuskegee History Center acknowledges that as it is situated in Macon County, Alabama, and it is located on the ancestral homeland of the Creek or Muscogee people, descended from the Mississippian peoples of 800-1500 AD. We acknowledge the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, both past and present, as well as future generations. Acknowledging past exclusions and erasures of many indigenous people, including those on whose lands this institution was founded, we demonstrate a commitment to the process of dismantling the ongoing legacies of settler colonialism.
Mailing Address

P.O. Box 830768
Tuskegee, AL 36083

Phone: 334-724-0800

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