Dion Hubert, 29, is one of 174 voters slated for removal by the Hancock County Board of Elections from voter registration lists in Sparta, Georgia. Hubert challenged the decision and his right to vote was restored.
“Good Times,” one of the first African-American sitcoms, launched in 1974, plays on the television in the home of Edith Ingram. Ingram was elected the first black probate judge in the United States. She's largely considered to be the town's matriarch, and residents met at her house to discuss the ongoing lawsuit and memories of the civil rights movement.
Edith Ingram, 74, is just called “The Judge” by many people in Sparta, Georgia, after being elected in 1968 as the first black probate judge in the United States. On her first day of work, white men stood at the base of the courthouse and threatened to shoot her in the back if she walked up the steps. She did anyway, and remained in office for over three decades.
In downtown Sparta, Georgia, a man drives through the center of town in his truck. Sparta is embroiled in a lawsuit over the recent removal of names from voter registration rolls. Last year, the county board of elections sent teams door to door asking residents if their neighbors still lived next door.
A large number of family members gather in a field for a reunion in Sparta, Georgia, on July 3. Family members visit and eat barbecued pork, corn on the cob and other Southern fare.
Locals pack up leftovers from a Fourth of July barbecue before they head out to see fireworks. A patriotic cake is nearly finished at the end of a large family reunion in Sparta, Georgia.
A dog plays in the streets of Newport, Indiana, located in Vermillion County. Indiana has the highest voter removal rate in comparison with other states, and Vermillion County has a higher removal rate than any other county in Indiana.
A brilliant sunset fades after a thunderstorm in Newport, Indiana. Residents said they did not have trouble voting because the small-town atmosphere means poll workers know all the townspeople, making it easier to prove their identity at the polls. Indiana was the first state to pass a strict photo ID law.