Opinion ID: 1151125
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Objections of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

Text: (6) Representatives of NAACP and CORE indicated no objection to the Masters' proposed congressional districts, but they suggested some changes to Senate Districts 25 and 28, and to the four assembly districts (Assem. Dists. 51, 52, 53 and 55) nested within them, to maximize Black opportunities for representation in the area. The proposed changes would increase the number of Blacks in Assembly Districts 51 and 52 and decrease the number of Blacks in Assembly District 55. The net effect of this change would be to render it unlikely that a fifth Black member of the Assembly would be elected from south central Los Angeles County, but it would bolster the probability of retaining four Black members of the Assembly in the area throughout the decade. Although NAACP and CORE may have valid tactical reasons for seeking only four Black majority districts in the area, we believe that the Masters' decision to maximize the number of such districts was a reasonable one that was entirely consistent with the Voting Rights Act, particularly in light of the fact there are currently five Black Assembly members from this area. We also appreciate the difficulties inherent in the task of attempting to steer a middle course between unnecessary dilution of minority voters among too many districts, and overconcentration or packing minority voters into too few such districts. (See ante, p. 715.) We also note that the relatively minor changes we have made in the Masters' proposed Assembly Districts 51 and 53, as previously discussed ( ante, p. 723), constitute part of the changes sought by NAACP and CORE.