Black Texans Must Fight Back Against Disinformation, a New Form of Voter Suppression

By Jazmyn Ferguson As we approach the March 5th primary election, there is a looming threat of voter suppression that specifically targets Black voters in Texas: the complicated and pervasive spread of disinformation.& Black voters are more than familiar with their community’s long history of being disenfranchised. The United States has only been able to claim status as a democracy since the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act when Black people were first legally guaranteed the right to vote. Yet& even today, suppressive policies such as voter ID laws, rollbacks to early voting, and the disenfranchisement of current and formerly incarcerated people disproportionately affect our community. This silencing was fought by our grandparents, our parents, and all of us must continue to fight today.& However, in our current fight to be heard in this 2024 election season, disinformation is a uniquely insidious deterrent to voting that takes advantage of our community’s understanding of this history, and serves to silence our voices even further. Kamala Harris swearing in Secretary of State Antony Blinken | Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons The word “disinformation” has been thrown around much in the last several years, but what it means is clear: information disseminated with...