The law states that the right to vote is a right that is given to everyone, once you have reached the legal age of 18. If you are a criminal should you still have the right to vote? If the law is broken does that mean you give up your voting rights that came with the upholding of the law? Voting is important as it lets the public’s voice be heard by the leaders of the country and brings communities together to push for what they think is right. Despite this, criminals have been banned from voting for more than one hundred years in the UK. The ban has been a large topic of controversy as it is one of the few areas of the UK’s human rights laws that contravenes the European Convention on Human Rights, which says everyone may vote regardless if …show more content…
This brings up the question, should criminals be allowed to vote? I will tell you why I know they should not.
Criminals should not be allowed to vote as they cannot be trusted to make a logical decision on a matter that will affect the lives of others. Since criminals have broken the law, they have made a series of bad judgement calls to end up in prison, therefore have shown that they cannot be trusted to vote on who will be the future leader of the country or other important matters. This point is emphasized by Roger Clegg, the President and General Counsel of the Centre for Equal Opportunity and the former Deputy Assistant Attorney General to Ronald Reagan and George Bush. His statements refer to the American laws but still apply to
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The whole idea of going to prison is not just punishment but also time for criminals to reflect on what they did and try and reform themselves. When prisoners are cut off from the outside world completely they lose their ties with the rest of society and could end up feeling more isolated from society when they leave prison. If ex-criminals feel isolated and alone when they get out of prison, they could end up reoffending in order to return to prison where they get a sense of belonging and being a part of a community in itself. Voting offers this connection to the rest of society to prisoners and allows them to feel a part of the community when they get out of jail and will stop them reverting back to their criminal ways. This idea is demonstrated by Dr Jeff Manza, the Professor of Sociology and Political Science at the Institute for Policy Research. He says that “Denying prisoners the right to vote is likely to undermine respect for the rule of law... Allowing prisoners to vote, by contrast, may strengthen their social ties and commitment to the common good, thus promoting legally responsible participation in civil
Every civilization in history has had rules, and citizens who break them. To this day governments struggle to figure out the best way to deal with their criminals in ways that help both society and those that commit the crimes. Imprisonment has historically been the popular solution. However, there are many instances in which people are sent to prison that would be better served for community service, rehab, or some other form of punishment. Prison affects more than just the prisoner; the families, friends, employers, and communities of the incarcerated also pay a price. Prison as a punishment has its pros and cons; although it may be necessary for some, it can be harmful for those who would be better suited for alternative means of punishment.
You are in a sense taking away their voice and they think they no longer matter they may even commit more crimes if they feel unwanted or left out. When released felons are released and have paid their debt to society denying them the right to vote it essentially taxation without representation(3). Today millions of American citizens are working and paying their taxes and have a productive life in the community(3). Their raising families and going to work but do not have a voice in local or national affairs that may or may not even affect them(3).
As of 2015, 12 out of 50 state inmates, parolees, probationers, and ex-felons are not allowed to vote (Green). Felons who have paid their debt to society should have all of their rights and privileges restored, thus meaning their right to vote. We allow these ex-felons to get married, buy and own a house, have a family, and drive a car, why not allow them to vote? These are the basic rights of a US citizen, but because they served jail time, they are unfit to choose our next leaders.
The feelings of allowing felons to vote is chilling; those who have been to prison have committed crimes and are out to get their rights back. But it is clear that felons should be “disenfranchised because they have broken the laws,” says Edward Feser, a philosophy professor and writer. Yet people are still questioning whether it is moral to keep felons from getting the rights to vote. Disenfranchising felons is unintentional in racial issues, and is used to punish felons to teach them that once they've broken the laws, they have lost their voting rights as well, and it would also keep felons from violating fellow citizens' voting rights.
In the United States 2.2 million citizens are incarcerated on felony charges. Laws in America prohibit felons from voting. As a result, on Election Day 5.3 million citizens of America are disenfranchised because of crimes they once committed. Though they once broke the law, they have served their time and have been punished adequately in accordance with the American Justice System. Felons should regain full voting rights after their stint in prison.
Many people believe that felons do not deserve the right to vote. For these people, voting is not an inherent right; rather it is a privilege given to deserving people that wish to make a positive change to their lives. Some believe that, “…there is no reason for a felon to vote or to debate about whether or not they have that right…they made the choice to break the law, so why should they have any say in making it?” {Siegel} In this point of view, giving felons the right to vote is similar to rewarding them. With the right to vote, felons are still able to sway decisions regarding the lives of a society they are no longer a part of. Felons are meant to be punished, stripped of numerous rights including that of voting. Punishments, then, are made to restrict a person, not give them more freedom and decision.
Felon voting laws limit the restrictions for a felon to vote on any election. “Felon voting has not been federally regulated because some people argue that Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act can be tied to felon disenfranchisement and the Congress has the authority to legislate felon voting in federal elections.” Felon disenfranchisement is excluding people otherwise eligible to vote from voting due to conviction of a criminal offence, usually restricted to the more serious class of crimes, felonies. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures and The Sentencing Project, 1 in 40 adults were unable to vote due to a felony conviction in the 2008 elections. One purpose of the felon voting laws is the uncertainty of trusting
The United States is one of the only few democratic countries that disenfranchises convicted felons. An estimated 5.85 million people charged with a felony are banned from voting. Moreover, felon disenfranchisement laws are a form of racial discrimination because a large percentage of felons are Hispanic, Latino or African American that have been incarcerated as a result of racial profiling. Denying felons from voting is unconstitutional since the right to vote and cast a ballot is supposed to be the cornerstone of democracy. Felons who have completed their sentence should be restored their right to vote as they should be able to participate in elections just like every other citizen. Despite being charged with a felony, felons are also American
Should Felons Lose the Right to Vote? Retrieved from http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2010/03/22/should-felons-lose-the-right-to-vote/. Karlan, Pamela (2004). The 'Pale of the 'Pale of the 'Pale of the "Convictions and Doubts: Retribution, Representation, and the Debate" over Felon Disenfranchisement," Stanford Law Review, Vol. 78, No. 1, pp 56, No. 2 -. 5, Krajick, Kevin. The Species of the World.
Criminal disenfranchisement is defined as the loss of the right to vote by a person convicted of or sentenced to imprisonment for a felony. Since before the civil war, this practice has been a part of the United States justice system mostly as a means to handle the racial issues with voting but then also in regards to the felons and rebels that participated in the Southern “rebellion” during the Civil War. This practice has recently gained some popularity since a debate has developed as to whether it is unconstitutional or not. Is voting a right or a privilege?
...he right to vote. I made a ten question survey that asked questions about letting convicted felons have the right to vote in major elections throughout America. Thirteen out of thirty high school students said that convicted felons should have the right to vote because they are American citizens. The other seventeen people I surveyed said that they should not have the right to vote because they had their chance to perform correctly in society and failed miserably. As you can now see, I have given you many reasons to see that convicted felons should not have the right to vote. They cannot be trusted with such a responsibility as voting for this country’s next leader.
Although this right is considered fundamental, restrictions have been placed on this right. The main restriction is placed on persons convicted of a felony conviction, all felonies, not just infamous ones. Today on Election Day, as Americans wait in line to cast their vote, over 4.65 million people are denied this most fundamental democratic right because of a past or present felony conviction. It is true that some felons can make bad judgments that are provocative and rebellious and the foundation to further jeopardy. In fact, statistics show the number of times prisoners had been arrested was the best predictor of whether they would commit more crimes after being released and how quickly they would return to their criminal ways....
For example, we as a nation fought for our freedoms ,specifically freedom of speech. Therefore forcing people to vote is an "infringement of the citizen's freedom" according to text 2 line 19. In addition, text 3 lines 27-28 "In fact, some people might even interpret mandatory voting as a violation of [the] First Amendment's prohibition of compelled speech". Furthermore, it should be upon us if we want to vote. Unlike Australia, citizens should not be fined when they don't vote. Most importantly, if democracy is about freedom, then we shouldn't be enforced to vote and our freedom should not be disregarded. As can be seen, the violation of our rights clearly states why we shouldn't be obliged to
Uggen, Christopher, and Jeff Manza. "Why Should Felons Vote?" Democracys Ghost. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.
The government also has the right for certain groups to make that ballet harder to cast. The reason that voting rights restriction is so important is because it stops numerous people from voting, a specific group of people were targeted, and the reason the law was made is wrong. The 2016 election will be hit with numerous voting restrictive laws making it harder to vote for the general populous. There are 31 states that enforce government identification cards prior to voting. Around 11% of people able to vote don't have a government identification card, according to Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge.