The WNYC (New York Public Radio) show “The Takeaway” has a great recent episode on the latest expansion of voting rights to former felons in North Carolina–great in large part because of the terrific summary the show created of the battle over granting black Americans their Constitutionally given right to vote that has been waged in the state since Reconstruction–1875 to the present.

Check out the story here: “A Win for Felony Offender Enfranchisement in North Carolina” – click the yellow “LISTEN” button just under the headline to hear the piece, which documents the wins and losses that civil rights activists have had in their battle to uphold the Constitution.

As host and narrator Melissa Harris-Perry notes, the story of un-American attempts to stop black Americans from voting is not unique to North Carolina, or even former Confederate states, nor is it new: it’s a nationwide problem with a long history that every democratic American will naturally condemn.

Go listen and enjoy this well-done piece of history writing!