Sinema has said she doesn’t support ending the filibuster — a tactic used in the Senate to delay or block floor votes on bills without a 60-person majority — while Mark Kelly has been less public about his thoughts on the matter./Common Cause
By Perry Vandell | Arizona Republic
A large group of progressives gathered at Civic Space Park in downtown Phoenix early Thursday evening where speakers and attendees urged Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and Sen. Mark Kelly to end the filibuster.
Sinema has said she doesn’t support ending the filibuster — a tactic used in the Senate to delay or block floor votes on bills without a 60-person majority — while Mark Kelly has been less public about his thoughts on the matter.
Approximately a couple hundred people gathered in the park around 5:30 p.m. where democratic lawmakers and local activists urged the two moderate democrats to end the filibuster and open up opportunities for new bills being passed with a slim majority.
Speaker says filibuster is born from racism
The Rev. Reginald Walton, executive director of the African American Christian Clergy Coalition, said the filibuster has been used by racist ideologies meant to harm and suppress minorities seeking to have their voices heard.
“The filibuster has been used to stop the Voting Rights Act,” Walton said. “The filibuster has been used to stop the Anti-Lynching Bill. Guess what happens when that happens? People are hurt!”
