“The First Amendment allows individuals to speak, publish, read and view what they wish, worship (or not worship) as they wish, associate with whomever they choose, and gather together to ask the government to make changes in the law or to correct the wrongs in society.” 

–American Library Association

 

Despite the freedoms identified in the United States Constitution, we live in a country that has repeatedly found ways to communicate to certain communities that their stories, their lives, their ideas, and their particular brands of love and self-expression are something to be hidden. To force something into hiding implies that it is wrong, that it should be kept out of sight, and that it is shameful. To fail to acknowledge someone communicates that they are less than and unworthy of attention or celebration. This country has a long history of silencing others, either by denying them the opportunity to tell their stories or by forbidding them from learning to understand the stories of others. 

 

In the South, forbidding communities from accessing the stories of others has typically been deemed necessary under the guise of protection. Some argue that it was necessary for these stories to be hidden for the safety of society, but - from the perspective of those who have been forced to hide - these conversations seem to be less about the safety of society and more about the security of some people’s positions in society. Hiding stories allows for mistakes to be made over and over again. The absence of these stories leads people to believe that they do not have the power or ability to address harm and evoke change. There is a direct connection between what took place in the past and what is happening presently.

 

People have been taught to fear the stories of others who have been labeled “different,” particularly if white supremacy has identified those differences as challenging, uncomfortable, or upsetting to the status quo. Literacy became a life or death issue early-on in the history of the United States for these “different” communities. Black people, in particular, learned to discourage one another from pursuing any form of education out of fear of what would happen if it was learned that a person was literate. Even when it became legal for Black people to be taught to read and write, members of the Black community discouraged one another from using these skills, especially if their words were intended to challenge authority. This is evidenced by how Ida B. Wells was harassed and threatened for having the audacity to publish a newspaper and to write about lynchings. In this vein, one can understand why some communities learned to preserve their stories and histories in spoken - rather than written - form. Much of the Black and the American Indian communities’ emphasis on oral traditions was about safety and sanctity. 

 

"I think book banning is situated inside of a larger societal issue… Truth-telling is dangerous. To be a truth-teller in this current volatile setting is dangerous.” –Jaki Shelton Green

 

Too often, those in positions of power feared what would happen if the marginalized and the mistreated were informed about what they were deserving of or encouraged to take action in response to mistreatment. While many believe that you cannot use the master’s tools to destroy his house, there is an argument that one should at least have access to the master’s tools for equality and equity purposes. To deny this access is to maintain a hierarchy that emphasizes who should have authority and who should be subjected to whatever those in authority choose to do.This message comes in multiple forms, even from the pulpits throughout the Bible Belt South. We see this in versions and interpretations of the Bible that were intended to keep women and enslaved populations in subservient positions, as well as in stories of how information about rebellions, emancipation, and escapes were hidden from people who remained in bondage. 

 

“White supremacy is not limited to white people.” - KJ Kearney

 

In North Carolina, white supremacy has shown up in many ways as it pertains to literacy. This is most apparent in laws prohibiting anyone from teaching slaves to read or write (1818, 1830) and the establishment of the literacy requirement for voting (1899). While you may be thinking that these laws do not presently impact us because legislation like the Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed practices like the literacy test, North Carolina’s official state documents may give you pause. The state of North Carolina has not removed the literacy requirement from the state constitution. As of December 2023, article VI, section 4 of the North Carolina State Constitution states:

 

“Every person presenting himself for [voter] registration shall be able to read and write any section of the Constitution in the English language.” –NCGS Article VI, Section 4

 

If you are surprised by this, you may be even more shocked to learn that - in 1969 - then-representative Henry Frye posed legislation to remove this language from the State Constitution and - in 1970 - North Carolina voters rejected the change. That speaks volumes about the people in the state of North Carolina and their views on equality despite our state’s historical and current struggles with literacy. 

 

North Carolina was one of the southern states targeted by Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated’s National Library Project in the 1930’s because of literacy concerns in the Jim Crow south. We are also a state that has had to legally mandate changes to how reading instruction is taught because of the number of struggling young readers statewide. According to data collected by wisevoter in 2023, the literacy rate in North Carolina is 78.7%. Our state ranks thirty-fifth in literacy when compared to other states in the United States. One would think that - for a state where literacy is such a concern - the last thing we should do is connect people’s fundamental rights to their reading and writing skills. 

 

In light of the many concerns about the discriminatory practices of the literacy test, in 2023 Representatives Alexander, Brown, Stevens and Saine introduced House Bill 44, which read as follows:

 

“[  ] FOR [  ] AGAINST

Constitutional amendment to remove the literacy test requirement for voting from theNorth Carolina Constitution. The federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibits implementation of this requirement.”

(Source: DemocracyNC)

 

Earlier this year, Carol Moreno of DemocracyNC summarized the purpose of House Bill 44 by saying, “House Bill 44 shines a light on the white supremacist ideology that shapes our laws, while moving our state forward toward a more equitable future. If approved by voters in the 2024 General Election, House Bill 44 will remove the literacy test from the North Carolina Constitution.” 

 

It was many North Carolinians’ hope that we would have the opportunity to remove the antiquated and discriminatory literacy test requirement from our state’s Constitution later this year. Unfortunately, as of June 27, 2024 it has been announced that this proposed amendment will not be included on the ballot in November 2024. According to WRAL News, “[the] proposed constitutional [amendment] failed to pass in the rushed final days of the legislative session.” Rather - in November 2024 - registered North Carolina voters will be asked to approve one constitutional amendment regarding voting, which focuses on reaffirming the state's citizen-only voting rules.

 

The history of literacy woes and discriminatory practices in this state continue to plague us in 2024. While many emphasize that the literacy test cannot be enforced due to federal legislation, in light of all of the ways that this country has continued to reach for and reinstate some of the most problematic historical practices, it remains arguable that it is better for the concerning language to be removed from the State Constitution now than to have to explain to future generations why the language is still there if and/or when North Carolina legislators find a creative way to make the test enforceable again.

 

Regardless of the politics at play in our state, it remains important to be mindful of the power that literacy holds and the threat that literate minorities have always been to the status quo. While we are working and fighting to ensure voting rights for those throughout the state, let us be just as zealous in our advocacy to remove the language that could infringe on those rights from our governing documents.