Minority Political Empowerment in New York City: Beyond the Voting Rights Act
The 1991 elections for the New York City Council resulted in substantial political change in the composition of that body. Minorities of virtually every description found themselves in new positions among the city's politically empowered communities. This article discusses how the districting process resulted in fundamental changes to the city's legislature. It suggests that the 1965 Voting Rights Act (the act) -including its 1982 amendments and the developing case law -is not the most appropriate method or tool by which to address the continuing empowerment of minority communities after their members are elected to public office in substantial numbers. The authors, who were key participant observers in this process, argue that the New York City districting process was a logical outgrowth of the act and that the act must be expanded to meet new needs. Twelve African Americans (up from six) and nine Latinos (up from three) were elected to the new council. For the first time in the history of the city, a minority council member was elected to represent a district where less than 80