Filibuster or Bust?

Senator Pepper and others used the filibuster to fight against an Anti-Lynching bill.

• 1891 - Filibuster killed the civil-rights minded (bill to ensure Black men in the South weren’t impeded in voting)

• 1922 - Filibuster killed the Dyer Anti-Lynching bill

• 1934 - Filibuster killed the Costigan-Wagner Anti-Lynching bill

• 1942 - Filibuster killed the Anti-Poll Tax bill

• 1946 - Filibuster killed the Fair Employment Practices bill

• 1957 - Filibuster was used against the Civil Rights act of 1957

• 1964 - Filibuster attempted against the Civil Rights act of 1964

If we had a track record like the above on our stances and political positions, we would question our life philosophies. Filibuster has almost always been used to perpetuate injustice. In fact, the first filibuster was to protect Andrew Jackson. What many don’t also know is that the filibuster was made possible by Aaron Burr in 1789 when he was vice president (and we all remember who that guy was, right?). Since its inception, the filibuster has been on the wrong side of history. That, and the fact that it hasn’t always existed, whatever some claim, make it an artifact whose time has come and gone.

What else do we think about it? Listen to Right and Freedom’s podcast to learn more!