The straw that broke the camel’s back. That old saying makes the point that sometimes the load gets so heavy until one more little thing — one more straw — causes a breakdown. That’s the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

A camel is a powerful animal. It has a powerful back with huge humps. A camel can carry a heavy load over inhospitable land for great distances. Sometimes, however, the load gets so heavy that another straw cannot be added without breaking the camel’s back. The closing of the driver’s license offices in the Alabama Black Belt may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

In June 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down the decision in the Shelby vs. Holder case. It gutted the 1965 Voting Rights Act by deactivating Section 5, which required preclearance of voting changes in states that had denied African Americans and other minorities the right to vote. Less than a week after the 2012 Presidential election, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the Shelby vs. Holder case, and we saw the voting storms on the horizon. We tried to move people. However, the people would not move. The load was not heavy enough. There was no straw to break the camel’s back.

The day after the U.S. Supreme Court issued the Shelby decision on June 25, 2013, Alabama moved to implement a photo ID law. There is absolutely no need for photo ID because there are no instances of people coming to the polls pretending to be someone else in order to vote. The challenge is to get people to come to the polls even one time. Two hundred and fifty thousand voting-age citizens do not have photo ID in Alabama. Therefore, they will not be able to vote. Turnout in the 2014 general election was the lowest since World War II.

The voter photo ID Act was passed in 2011 by the Alabama Legislature but not implemented. They knew the U.S. Justice Department would never pre-clear this voting law so it was not submitted. They were waiting on this decision even though the U.S. Supreme Court had not even indicated they would hear the case. When the decision came, the anti-forces in Alabama, North Carolina, Texas and other places did move. But the people did not move. There was still no straw to break the camel’s back.

The Alabama Legislature created legislative districts that drastically reduced the political influence of African Americans. They made certain that majority African American districts were left in October. However, they also made certain that few other persons were elected who might work with African Americans. As a result, African American legislators were isolated and depowered. But the people did not move. There was no straw to break the camel’s back.

Then came the appointment of voting registrars. There are three registrars appointed in each of 66 of Alabama’s 67 counties. They are entirely white in nearly all counties including counties with nearly 70-80 percent Black populations. But the people did not move. The load was not heavy enough. There was no straw to break the camel’s back.

There were other voting challenges in Alabama. It is an ongoing piece-by-piece attack on voting rights. Put it all together, and the picture is painfully clear. But the people did not move.  The load was not heavy enough. There was no straw to break the camel’s back.

Then something happened last week. To most people it did not seem like much because it was just a straw. The straw was in the closing of 31 driver’s license offices throughout the state.  However, 11 of the 13 in Black Belt counties were closed. These counties have the highest percentage of African Americans. This made it far more difficult to get driver’s licenses, which provide the primary photo ID for voting. People began to move. It may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

I wrote about the closing of the driver’s license offices in last week’s Sketches. There were other articles published in the media. It was on national news. A group of citizens commenced preparations to file a lawsuit. The Rev. Jesse Jackson of Rainbow PUSH came to Birmingham and Montgomery for press conferences. He and a delegation met with the governor, the secretary of state and others. The people were moving. This may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

This week, the Rev. Al Sharpton will be in Alabama. He and other leaders will visit most of the Black Belt counties where driver’s license offices are closing. There will be meetings, press conferences and ongoing planning. Congresswoman Terri Sewell has spoken out. So many persons have contacted me. The people are moving. It may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

The ultimate goal is to fully restore the Voting Rights Act and make voting a true, universal right. A strong voting rights bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congresswoman Terri Sewell and in the U.S. Senate by Senator Patrick Leahey of Vermont. We must build a powerful movement to move the bill through Congress.  This is not just a moment but a movement. This just may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. And it needs breaking.

We never know which straw will break the camel’s back. People have to be careful when they keep piling on. There was no way to know that closing driver’s license offices would potentially be the straw that breaks the camel’s back and move people who do not want to move.