Voices from violent civil rights era view attacks on voting rights as part of continuing struggle

Civil rights Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. (fore, third left) and others arrive at the White House for a meeting with President Lyndon B Johnson on the day before the Voting Rights Act was signed on August 5, 1965. (Marion S Trikosko/US News & They are part of a small, vanishing group who lived at the epicenter of the struggle for voting rights six decades ago, an era driven by segregation, violence and the yearning for equality that eventually led to laws bringing the U.S.

closer to its promise of democracy for all its citizens.As the country awaits a Supreme Court decision on whether one of those laws, the Voting Rights Act, will be reinforced or further eroded, they reflect on the times and their struggles, and why they are certain it all was worth it. RELATED: House where MLK planned 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches moving to MichiganTen years ago this month, the court halted what many consider the heart of that landmark law — the ability of the Justice Department to enforce it in states and counties with a history of voter suppression.

The justices now will decide how strongly to protect minority groups when they challenge political boundaries drawn through states' redistricting.President Lyndon B.

Johnson celebrates with Martin Luther King, Jr., Ralph Abernathy, and Clarence Mitchell after signing the Voting Rights bill into law. (CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images) The stories from those on the front lines of history recount tragedy, racism, oppression and ultimately hope in seeing a president sign into law a measure designed to ensure equal access to the ballot and fair representation in the halls of political power — from city councils to statehouses to Congress.RELATED: Young people would give up their right to.