On January 27 the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued the Charles Mix County of South Dakota on behalf of four members of the Yankton Sioux tribe for violating the 1965 Federal Voting Rights Act, which was established to prohibit state government discrimination against marginalized groups of people through redistricting.
In Blackmoon v. Charles Mix County, the ACLU asserts the county has illegal voting districts that divide the Native voice and prevent American Indians to elect a representative of their choosing.
Sharon Drapeau, one of the four plaintiffs said in a phone interview that, "It [is] about time we did something about the voting districts in this county. When we looked at how [the voting lines] were drawn, we realized no one had ever questioned the responsibility of the County Commissioner to adhere to the law."
Drapeau is frustrated because many of her people are not aware of the law, specifically those related to political participation. She said, "If you donÂ’t know you have rights, then you have nothing to question."
The ACLUÂ’s lawsuit accuses the Charles Mix County Commission of failing to redraw the voting lines after the results of the 2000 census, which confirmed that the voting-district populations were unequal and out of Charles Mix CountyÂ’s population of approximately nine thousand, 30 percent identify themselves as Indian.
According to the United States Constitution, no county is allowed differences between races to exceed ten percent in any given district; Charles Mix County voting districts have deviations nearing twenty percent. As a result, the voting influence of the Yankton Sioux is diluted by Caucasian voters on issues such as taxes, tribal land access, and hunting and fishing laws. The ACLU requests that "one person, one vote," enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment be honored and that equally populated voting districts should be redrawn every ten years.
The ACLU warned Charles Mix County 2001 that they were in violation of the Voting Rights Act after the decennial census, but in 2002 the county made a blatantly illegal decision to not make any changes when they reviewed their voting districts.
When asked in a phone interview why he decided not to redraw the voting lines one of the defendants, Charles Mix County Auditor, Norman Cihak stated, "I am unable to comment." Cihak's lawyer Sarah Frankenstein also stated that she had just received the complaint and had no comments for the press at that time.
Drapeau said, "They have not yet provided a sufficient response – they just like nice straight lines."
Evelyn Blackmoon, an elder of the Yankton Sioux tribe, told the Rapid City Journal she could not remember an Indian holding public office in Charles Mix County.
Alan Flying Hawk, another plaintiff, explained in a phone interview that he has felt disenfranchised and angry since becoming aware of the alleged illegal voting districts.
The lawsuit filed on January 27 asked the court to dissolve current voting districts in this county and to create new voting districts that allow the voice of American Indians to be heard. Drapeau hopes that once the voting lines are redrawn, her people will have a better chance to be represented. She also hopes that it will raise awareness on other Indian reservations throughout the United States about voting rights.
The most recent case won by the ACLU in South Dakota was Hazeltine v Boneshirt. Federal Judge Karen Schreier ruled on September 14, 2004 that the South Dakota Legislature under the Secretary of State Joyce Hazeltine violated the Voting Rights Act in favor of the ACLU representing four American Indians from the Pine Ridge and Rosebud Reservations.
Since 1999 the ACLU has filed six other voting-rights complaints against South Dakota, one is currently pending, and five won in favor of the ACLU plaintiffs.
