New lines to bring us together, rather than divide us. View the Plaintiffs’ updated Map 4 here.
On May 23, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida blocked the Miami City Commission’s map that divides neighborhoods along racial lines, packs Black and Hispanic residents into specific districts, and denies Miamians a fair voice in government. The injunction was issued as part of ongoing litigation, GRACE, Inc. v. City of Miami, which challenges Miami’s City Commission map as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The litigation was filed on behalf of Grove Rights and Community Equity (GRACE), Engage Miami, the South Dade and Miami-Dade NAACP Branches, and five individual city residents. The case will proceed to a full trial, but in the meantime the Court ordered the Miami City Commission to propose newer, fairer maps in time for the November 2023 elections. The Commission submitted a new map (viewable on Google Maps here) to the Court.
On July 7, 2023, the plaintiffs in the case submitted a proposed map (“P4”) to the Court for its consideration. Along with three earlier maps that the plaintiffs had presented to the Commission, P4 presents a new vision for the City of Miami:
- Districts are logical and compact.
- Lines respect neighborhoods, follow major geographic boundaries, and preserve genuine communities of interest.
- This map undo the racial gerrymandering that has violated Miamians’ rights to equal protection of the laws, while also complying with the Voting Rights Act and protecting fair representation.
View P4, as well as the plaintiffs’ earlier proposals, on Google Maps here. A detailed printed map is here.
Data files for all maps are available for download here.
Read the plaintiffs’ brief objecting to the Commission’s new map, and submitting P4 to the court, here. Attached exhibits, including detailed maps, are available here.
