“There is an estimated number of 5.85 million Americans who are prohibited from voting due to laws that disenfranchise citizens convicted of felony offenses.” (Uggen). Varying by state, each disenfranchisement law is different. Only 2 out of 50 U.S. states; Vermont & Maine, authorize voting from convicted felons incarcerated and liberated as shown in (Fig. 1). But of the 48 remaining states these rights are either prohibited or authorized in at least 5 years succeeding to liberation. This disenfranchisement needs to be retracted due to fact that convicted felons; incarcerated or liberated, are U.S. citizens who are guaranteed constitutional rights that should allow them as citizens to have equal opportunity in political and social decisions. USA Today reports that thousands are falsely convicted each year some of their crimes ranging from petty larceny to serious offenses like murder. Those convicted are then deprived of their constitutional right to make decisions that could affect them during incarceration or after. There is a growing number of incarcerated felons who have been falsely convicted because of a minor offense who when released are prohibited from voting and sustaining certain rights as citizens. This prohibition is unjust and debasing. Voting is a right of a citizen, this right allows said citizens to live comfortably and fairly in their society. It is irrelevant that the citizen(s) are incarcerated during the time of elections it is only relevant that as a citizen the vote affects them and the environment in which they live in. NAACP President and CEO, Benjamin Jealous, said in an interview with CNN Newsroom that “…people who have paid their debts to society should be allowed to vote” (Orjoux). But it is overlo... ... middle of paper ... ...rint. Leong, Nancy. Felon Reenfranchisement: Political Implications and Potential for Individual Rehabilitative Benefits. Stanford: n.p., n.d. PDF. Orjoux, Alanne. "NAACP Pushes to Reinstate Former Felons' Voting Rights." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. "Report: Thousands Wrongly Convicted Each Year." Report: Thousands Wrongly Convicted Each Year. USA Today, 11 Feb. 2005. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. Uggen, C., Shannon, S., & Manza, J. (2010). State-level estimates of felon disenfranchisement in the United States, 2010. Washington, D.C.: The Sentencing Project. Retrieved Form Wagner, Peter. Incarceration Rates by Race & Ethnicity, 2010. Digital image. Prison Policy Initiative. PPI, 2012. Web. 6 Dec. 2013. Yingling, Melina. Felons and Voting Rights. Digital image. Boston Occupier. The Boston Occupier Free Press, 4 Nov. 2012. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.
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.
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
26, 2007 editorial "Another No Vote on Felons," published in the Washington Times: “Even in nearby Massachusetts, no stranger to progressivism, voters in 2000 supported a constitutional amendment to bar inmates from voting. The reason is clear: Most people think perpetrators of serious crimes have violated the public trust and cannot be permitted to help determine the future of the communities they harmed”. This view point is helpful to help undecided people see the potential harm of letting free convicted prisoners vote. Also, it is interesting how the very thought of convicted felons vote places such concern in the law abiding citizens’ thoughts. One may notice that particular past criminals may not have the best interest in what best for the community. Furthermore, one may notice that prisoners may be cut off from the events of the world, and wouldn’t have information to help them elect officials for the communities they may harmed. In, addition this may be true under the circumstance that some felons are not capable of making great choices for the community as a whole. As well as, if they have harmed the community they shouldn’t be able to vote on the wellbeing of the people they have
whims of state legislatures. Laws that prohibit felons from voting are a punishment above and
As Loury and Karlan point out, incarcerated black individuals become disenfranchised due to the “draconian laws” of our judiciary system ( ). However, where have we seen this in an actual life scenario where it counts? The answer is the United States presidential election of 2000. Here, George W. Bush defeated Al Gore and won the state by approximately 500 votes. The relevance of this is astonishing, because, according to Loury, Florida disenfranchises the most black individuals than any other state due to incarceration ( ). The black voters had the power to literally alter to course of our American history by potentially swaying the state in favor of Al Gore, that is if they had not have had their voting rights
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?
Karjick, Kevin. “Why Can’t Ex-Felons Vote?” Washingtonpost.com. Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2004: A19. Web. 17 Oct. 2012.
...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.
In most states ex-felons are not allowed to vote. This takes away a large portion of the voting population because of how many ex-felons there are right now and the many more that will be in the future. Ex-felons may also have a very hard time finding a job or a place to live. Legally landlords are allowed to deny an ex-felon. In Carbondale Illinois rental properties owners “Home Rentals” does background checks to make sure that none of their potential renters are felons. If they are felons Home Rentals claims that they will deny them the privilege of living in one of their properties. Ex-felons may also have a hard time finding jobs. Not many employers are willing to employ ex-felons for the fear of more crime or less commitment. Though denying these ex-felons jobs will not help the economy, only giving them jobs can help that.
...King, R., and Mauer, M., (2007). The Sentencing Project. Uneven Justice: State Rates of Incarceration by Race and Ethnicity. Retrieved from http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/rd_stateratesofincbyraceandethnicity.pdf
To be blunt if we keep denying released felons the right to vote we will keep losing touch with the fundamentals of our democracy. Our poll numbers will keep going down and people who want to vote won’t be able to. We will be denying them a helpful tool for reintegration or rehabilitation even if it doesn’t it might show us when someone is ready to become apart of society and stop reckless behavior. Also, just like in the case of Leola Strickland let people who just made a small mistake and still want to vote another
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
Wadley, Jared. "Panel: Ex-felons Should Be Allowed to Vote." January 9, 2012 | The University
The justice system in America is a failure and should be immediately reformed to a more standardized system that encourages reform over punishment. This is clearly evidenced by the 76.6% of prisoners that are rearrested within five years of release, the inequality of sentencing based on race or socioeconomic class, and the widely varying prison terms, which in many cases do not fit the crimes committed.
Because having a felony record makes participation in prosocial society so difficult, it is unsurprising that released felons often recidivate. Having a record is often used to disqualify candidates from employment, prevents felons from receiving welfare benefits such as food stamps, and disqualifies one from living in public housing. On top of this, there are often large fees and fines to pay as part of one’s punishment. Thus, in order to make ends meet released offenders return to the criminal underworld where they have connections and prior records of financial success. The issue with the implementation of programs to address this, such as education and job skills training for felons, are that they are expensive in an already over-budget