Benjamin Barber

Democracy Program Coordinator

@Ben_Barber_

Benjamin Barber is the democracy program coordinator at the Institute for Southern Studies, a contributing writer for Facing South, and a graduate of the School of Social Policy & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds a bachelor's degree in history from Barton College in Wilson, North Carolina. Benjamin previously interned with the Equal Justice Initiative in Alabama and with Facing South. He is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in American Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His research focuses on voting rights, democracy, and Southern history. 

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Articles by Benjamin Barber

Southern states create election police forces

By Benjamin Barber
April 7, 2022 - Republican lawmakers in Florida and Georgia passed legislation this year to establish “election police" to fight voter fraud, despite no evidence any widespread fraud has occurred. Voting rights advocates say the measures serve only to intimidate communities of color and further damage Americans' confidence in elections.

Pushing President Biden on voting rights

By Benjamin Barber
March 9, 2022 - Organizers are frustrated by Biden giving short shrift to voting rights in his first State of the Union address. In response, they're stepping up efforts to secure federal voting protections as state legislatures across the South continue to pass suppressive voting laws.

The South's schools are failing to teach accurate Reconstruction history

By Benjamin Barber
February 17, 2022 - A recent report from the Zinn Education Project comprehensively assesses educational standards for the teaching of Reconstruction history in all 50 states and finds vast room for improvement. The study urges policymakers, teachers, parents, and students to press for more attention to this history in grades K–12 as the era has assumed greater relevance amid ongoing fights for racial justice and historical accuracy.