Holder: Federal review of voting laws still needed

September 27, 2012 | Modified: September 28, 2012 at 12:01 am
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U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder speaks at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., Thursday, Sept. 27, 2012. The nation's first black attorney general says preserving civil rights remains a U.S. Justice Department priority. The speech is part of the university's events honoring the 50th anniversary of the Justice Department forcing it to admit its first black student, James Meredith. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Attorney General Eric Holder says U.S. laws requiring the Justice Department or a federal court to pre-approve changes to voting laws in states with a history of racial bias are still needed.

Speaking at the University of Mississippi, Holder said Thursday night he wished such pre-approval was no longer necessary. But he said that discrimination is not dead, pointing to a recent federal court decision that concluded Texas lawmakers had unfairly drawn legislative districts to exclude minorities.

Holder called federal preclearance of voting laws in the mostly southern states "a vital part of our enforcement action."

Holder's 18-minute speech was among Ole Miss events marking the 50th anniversary of the admission of James Meredith as its first black student. U.S. marshals battled rioters in 1961 so Meredith could attend classes.