Shaw v. Reno - Dissension

Justice White gave a dissenting opinion, joined by Justices Blackmun and Stevens. White believed that the appellants were not able to show how they had received a "cognizable injury." In other words, the appellants were not able to show that they were deprived of a right to vote, nor were they able to show that their own political strength was in any way diminished by the new district, and he cited the cases of Mobile v. Bolden (1980) and Guinn v. United States (1915). Justice White wrote that the issue in this case "is whether the classification based on race discriminates against anyone by denying equal access to the political process," and found that in this case, it had not.