"In late November, a federal appeals court ruled against a key component of the Voting Rights Act.

Passed in 1965, the Voting Rights Act was one of the biggest achievements of the Civil Rights movement in the U.S. It directly attacked discriminatory Jim Crow laws and prohibited gerrymandering voting districts along racial lines.

Now, though, the federal appeals court has ruled that only the government can bring lawsuits under the Voting Rights Act."