(KCEN) -- The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments today on a historic piece of national civil rights legislation.
The issue was over section five of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
It requires states with a history of discrimination at the polls to get federal permission before making any changes in how they conduct elections.
Opponents of Section 5 say times have changed and the law is outdated.
Supporters disagree and gathered outside the nation's high court today where they called on court justices to uphold Section 5.
Representative Raul Grijalva with the Congressional Progressive Caucus said, "Without Section 5 and the Voting Rights Act, we open ourselves up to an exclusionary society. Voters will be based on privilege and not based on the fundamental right that we all have to vote in this nation."
The Voting Rights Act was signed by President Johnson in 1965 and has been renewed four times since then.
The fact that the Court has agreed to hear the case is a sign that the conservative majority may be prepared to scale it back.
