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The United States And The Civil Right Movement
Introduction In the United States more than two million people are incarcerated and seven million
are under correctional supervision. There are 13 million adults that have been convicted of a felony
and 47 million American have something on their record. Having a felony has attained a newfound
relevance in the United States (King, 2006) . In many states begin a felon come with obstacles both
informal and formal in the lives of people with a felony convicted. In the midst of the growing civil
right movement, the augmented by racially disparate law enforcement and corrections policies the
word "felon" is commonly linked to the African American community. Having a felony conviction
limited housing, employment and educational opportunities. The barriers that of begin a felon
limited the accessing to opportunities that is available to the general population (King, 2006). In the
Unties Sates African Americans have a higher crime rate than any racial groups (Crutchfield,
Nov2007) . The bibliography will provide an overview of the felony disenfranchisement, with an
emphasis silencing the African American voice. This paper will provide details about how
disenfranchisement suppressing voter turnout for the entire African American community . It will
also provide a description the racial impact of felony disenfranchisement. Lastly the author will
provide a conclusion and a brief summary of the insights that were gained from this policy analysis
paper.
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Should Felons Be A Crime?
People who are felons have their rights and freedom taken away forever because they make a
mistake in life. How is that fair? Think about this for a minute; if a person gets a trafficking charge
or three DUI's within five years, that person now has a felony record and is labeled a felon. As
punishment the now felon are sentenced to prison for a time declared by a judge and on parole for
some time. Though the time has been served a felon is still at large. One non–violent crime stays on
your record forever? Some believe that just because a person committed a crime that all civil rights
should be taken away. Why? The "felon" label, along with the negative social and legal implications
that accompany it, is essentially blind to the severity of the underlying crime. The convicted felon
definition, the individuals that comprise this particular class include all social economic, racial,
ethic, and gender categorizations. Although the term felony commonly refers to serious crimes
punishable by imprisonment for at least a year, or by death, it may include minor crimes
(Saxonhouse, 2004). The convicted felons classification can be divided into two subcategories:
Current felons– those who are currently incarcerated, on probation, or on parole; and ex–felons–
those who have completed their sentences and are no longer under control of the criminal justice
system. Both violent and non–violent felons are measured equivalents within the current and ex–
felon groups (McGuire, 2014).
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The Land Of The Free, And The Home Of Our Brave
America has, in modern times, come to be considered a shining beacon of Western democracy, a
pillar of human rights justice, and a global model for a constitution–based government. The
American government itself created this stellar image, and has completely bought into the notion of
its supremacy in matters pertaining to democracy and human rights protection, as evinced by the
self–applauding rhetoric of politicians and the media, accompanied by the vehement defamation of
the governments of other nations. American citizens themselves, seem to subscribe to these
sentiments, believing their beloved country to be "the land of the free, and the home of the brave".
This characterization of American society is, at best, only applicable to its recent history, given its
sordid past of slavery, Jim Crow, xenophobic policies, and mass marginalization of minorities, all
completely antithetical to the notions of freedom and bravery. At worst, this depiction is a grossly
romanticized version of even its modern–day activities, given the problems of mass incarceration,
residential segregation and police brutality against minorities. A salient theme among a distressingly
significant number of America's problem is the issue of race. Systemic biases against specific races
seem to feature prevalently in problematic public policy. The African–American population,
particularly, always seem to be on the receiving end of the brunt of policies with racial elements.
Among the plethora of policies
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Should Felons Have The Right To Vote Essay
Should Felons Have the Right to Vote?
Millions of Americans lose the right to vote due to past felony convictions. While majority of
Americans have completed their sentence, they are still not afforded the opportunity to vote. In some
states voting rights of felons are terminated all together while other states allow felons who have
completed their sentence to regain their voting rights. Felon disenfranchisement is not being allowed
to vote after committing a felony. Felon Disenfranchisement takes a toll on our society by placing
limits on the amount of possible state votes, and discontinues voting rights in some states. A vast
number of citizens believe that felons should not have the right to vote. Felony disenfranchisement
places limitations on representation for election votes which affects the final decision on votes. "In
fact, 75 percent of disenfranchised voters live in their communities, either under probation or parole
supervision or having completed their ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Constitution does not allow excessive sanctions. It also calls for punishment that is suitable for the
offense. If all felons are excluded from voting would go against this amendment. To employ this
practice would cause a violation of our Eight Amendment right. All citizens should be allowed to
vote to refrain from violating this right.
Furthermore, ex–felons should be allowed to vote because it would help them while being re–
introduced into society. The criminals would learn the value of the law to strengthen their
participating in common practices. Even prisoners would come to respect the law and contribute to
the "common good" with voting rights. It would be helpful for these individuals because they would
be able to become important to society rather than a menace. Criminals would benefit our society
more if they are treated equally for their contribution of voting rather than as an
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Essay about A Call to Action: Opening the Ballot for...
"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 ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
But the" point of incarceration is to make the convicted offender suitable to re–enter society" (Hull).
This in turn means if the time of conviction is up then they are allowed to attain their rights as
returning citizens.
It is an assumption that race is a main factor in felony disenfranchisement because it prevents
political involvement from African Americans and other minority races who are convicted of crimes
that offenses are underlined in Felony Disenfranchisement laws that Haygood suggest are "offenses
considered to be committed by the majority of blacks." It could be supported that "more than one–
third of the total disenfranchised population are black men" (Fellner). Due to these numbers the
minority is disproportionally represented because of the astronomical amount of people in one race
who are prohibited from voting due to their criminal activity.
This is an unfair advantage to those superior to the inferior because the majority of political and
social interest adequately reflect one class. This class has one priority which is to shape an economy
that ensures their class and the standing in which they have in the country's political decisions as the
primary facilitators. This of course warrants merit because this class has found a way to limit the
influence that minorities have by establishing Felony Disenfranchisement
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Should Felons Be A Crime?
Ex– felons should have the right to vote. A felon is someone who has committed a serious crime. A
felony is "a serious crime, characterized under federal law and many state statutes as any offense
punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year" ("Convicted"). Felon
disenfranchisement is "Disenfranchisement is the taking away of voting rights" ("–Felon"). Ex–
felons having served their debts to society should be treated like humans and doing that they should
have their God given right to vote. When a person commits a crime, depending on the severity of the
crime they can go to jail, or even prison, but the punishment does not always end there. In some
states felons lose many rights, from rights to owning specific items to even losing money from
paying fines. One of the most important rights they can lose is the right to vote; "states decide who
is a criminal and whether or when that group can vote" (Manza 21). While leaving the power to the
states Congress has imposed very important limitations on the state's allowance to disqualify
citizens from their right to vote. However the treatment of ex–felons varies from state to state. Felon
disenfranchisement is deeply rooted in history, going back to ancient Greece and Rome. None of
this making it okay, just simply a problem that needs to be solved. Ex–felons should have the right
to vote. Violent crimes are not the majority of crimes that are linked to felon disenfranchisement.
These crimes only make up close
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Pros And Cons Of Felon Disenfranchisement
In the United States in 1800 felony disenfranchisement did not exist. After the war ended southern
states were bitter over their loss of one of their biggest economic staples, slavery. Racial
discrimination was common in those times and most people didn't want African Americans and
other former slaves to be able to contribute in one of the most important duties of citizenship. So,
states began to make laws to take away the rights of someone who had committed a crime in an
attempt to take away the voting rights of African Americans who at that time made up the majority
of people who had some sort of time in jail. Then by 1870 eighty percent of the states in the U.S.
had laws restricting felons from the right to vote. Using felon disenfranchisement laws divides the
people of the United States and should not be allowed.
Image by Pexels
Currently in the United States, only 12 states allow felons to vote after they have completed their
time in prison and 2 states that actually allow felons to vote while in prison. While 19 states allow it
after the sentence, parole, and probation and there are three states where felons are completely
banned from voting for the rest of their lives. For those nineteen states that allow it after parole and
probation, that is in essence still taking away their rights for most of their lives because depending
on the crime probation can last as long as 35 years. Felon disenfranchisement creates a racial divide
in the United States and can affect the
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Felons And The Voting Rights Act
Felons are people who have been convicted of a felony. Felony is a crime, typically one involving
violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for
more than one year or by death. In Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even
while they are incarcerated. Vermont's 1793 Constitution stipulates that residents can lose their right
to vote only if convicted of voter fraud. In Florida, Lowa and Virginia, felons and ex–felons
permanently lose their right to vote. Eleven states restrict voting even after a person has completed
their prison sentence and finished probation or parole. Twenty states require completion of parole
and probation before voting is allowed, and fourteen states allow felons to vote after they leave
prison. Florida and Texas each disenfranchise more than 600,000 people. In 1789, Kentucky became
the first U.S. state to ban convicted criminals from voting. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia
Sotomayor said that felon disenfranchisement is a violation of the Voting Rights Act in her May 4,
2006 dissenting opinion in Hayden v. Pataki. Ex–felons should be able to vote because they served
their time and now they are out. Hayden v. Pataki is a legal challenge to New York State 's law
disenfranchising individuals convicted of felonies while in prison and on parole. The initial pro se
complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, by Joseph
Hayden on September 12,
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Should Convicted Felons Have The Right Of Vote?
Jason Reeves
Mrs. Joseph
ELA
6/7/17 Should convicted felons have the right to vote?
How would you feel if one mistake caused one of your main rights as citizens to be taken away?
Today, people who have paid their dues are denied their innate right to vote and to participate in
decisions that governs their lives. Convicted felons who served their time have an innate right to
vote and failure to allow ex–felons to vote has a disproportionate impact on my minority
communities.
Having the right to vote is a part of being an American just like making a mistake is a part of being
human. President Obama said it best "...while the people in our prisons have made some mistakes –
and sometimes big mistakes – they are ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
In fact, ex–felons who have learned from their mistakes can offer a different perspective when
creating laws. This perspective can help create laws that prevent others from committing similar
crimes. If a felon has paid his debt to society and turned his life around they should have the right to
vote.
Before the Civil War, there were no federal laws to protect voting rights. Only white males had the
right to vote. In 1870, the 15th Amendment was established which stated "Specifically that the right
to vote shall not be denied or abridged on the basis of race, or previous condition of servitude"
(Introduction to Federal Voting Rights Laws). This amendment gives all Americans the right to be a
voice of change for the people by electing officials who will make a difference in their communities.
Unfortunately, one mistake can cause you to lose this right forever. As stated by Eric H. Holder, JD,
US Attorney General, in his Feb. 11, 2014, speech;
"Across this country today, an estimated 5.8 million Americans of our fellow citizens are prohibited
from voting because of a current or previous felony conviction. That's more than the individual
populations of 31 U.S. States.
And although well over a century has passed since post–Reconstruction states used these measures
to strip African–Americans of their most fundamental rights, the impact of felony
disenfranchisement on modern communities of color remains both
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Essay On Disenfranchisement
During this year's election disenfranchisement has come up in the news practically in Virgina where
the Governor Terry McAuliffe's has decided to restore the right for felons to vote. Now there are
many people who are angry with this being done some might see it as a political move other might
see at as him doing the right thing for the voters. The two sides both present good arguments for the
public to hear but this is not something that just got famous during this election many people have
been wanting this to happen all over the U.S. for a while now and now that it has many people are
mad while some are happy that something finally got done. Now there are 3 states that allow felons
to vote after incarceration and more might still be on the way. Disenfranchisement is not something
that started in our era it has been going on since early America "colonist brought it to North ... Show
more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Since Southern people were still mad that African Americans were citizens now, could no longer be
slaves, and that they may vote freely. So what many states did was enacted disenfranchisement laws
that enabled blacks to vote. How they did this was by targeting offenses that were mostly likely
being committed by African Americans. Many other people believe that this law was also made
since they got rid of the property test so the wealthy people wanted to get rid of lower class voters
and did this by enacting disenfranchisement. Even back then people started to form opinions about
this and had to be for it and others had to be against it. Whatever your opinion may be on
disenfranchisement it is always good to look at the two sides. This is because you may want to see if
one side might be better than the other or just to see the other side's argument. There are tons pros
and cons on this subject and many people have many different things that they want to say about
this. There are many pros to this subject one of them being trust, felons get
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Pros And Cons Of Felony Disenfranchisement
eligible for public assistance and it is more likely that a person will return to prison once they have
already been.
Forty–eight states and the District of Columbia deny prisoners the right to vote. Felony
disenfranchisement policies have a disproportionate impact on communities of color. Black
Americans of voting age are more than four times more likely to lose their voting rights than the rest
of the adult population, with one of every 13 black adults disenfranchised nationally. In total, 2.2
million black citizens are banned from voting. In 2007 more black men were disenfranchised than in
1870, the year the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified prohibiting laws that explicitly deny the right
to vote on the basis of race. When someone has been convicted of a felony they lose their right to
vote. Voting is one of our most important rights, as it grants us the ability to induce change, by
taking away a person's right to vote, they are no longer able to participate and political changes that
may very well affect them. Country's Greatest Impediment to Minority Political Participation While
felon disenfranchisement has been a longstanding practice in many states, in recent decades, there
has been a dramatic increase in the number of citizens disqualified from voting because of it. Since
1976, the number has climbed from roughly 1.2 million to approximately 6.1 million. Nationwide,
nearly one in seven black men are either temporarily or permanently disenfranchised as a
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Felony Disenfranchisement And Its Effects On The State Of...
Felony disenfranchisement is a law that was made in the 20th century. Disenfranchisement refers to
restrictions on which convicted felons are not allowed to vote. The United States'
disenfranchisement law places drastic effects on felons in their state of residency by preventing
them from voting. English colonists brought disenfranchisement to America as a punishment for
felons' criminal behavior. Committing a crime showed that they were unfit to be included in political
events. There is a lot of controversy about Disenfranchisement laws. Disenfranchisement varies in
different states Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even when they are
incarcerated. With this law that was made a lot of people thought differently about it. There were
many pros and cons and brought up a lot of controversy. Some say its injustice like and others say it
is perfectly fine because they are still citizens of the U.S and they are already serving a punishment
by imprisonment. Other states like Florida, Iowa, and Virginia both felons and ex–felons lose their
voting rights permanently. (W. Underhill, 2016). Twenty–nine states had laws on the books at the
time of the ratification of the Constitution. Laws such as this were borne out of concept of a punitive
criminal justice system. Around 1870 many southern states broadened felony disenfranchisement
and started to pay more attention to crimes committed by African Americans. This was used with the
requirements of the Fifteenth
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Essay On Felony Disenfranchisement
Felony disenfranchisement has been a growing issue in our society, 6.1 million people are not able
to vote this year because of it. Felony disenfranchisement prohibits the voting rights of prisoners and
varies state to state on the severity of prohibition of voting rights. The severity ranges from not
being able to vote in jail to not being able to vote until you submit an application to the government
which in Florida has a minimum of 5 years. This hinders their voice in the government and limits
what say they have in how our government is run; taking away part of their free speech. The origin
of felony disenfranchisement starts as far back as ancient Greece where those subjected to atimia
("dishonor") were unable to participate in public life style such as; "not being able to petition their
government, voting, holding office, instituting any criminal or civil actions against citizens, fighting
in the army, or receiving any sort of welfare–type public assistance." In European practices there
was civil death where the individual was stripped of their civil rights. American legal system
borrowed from English common law, forfeiture of ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
By taking away their right to vote they are showing the offender and society that criminal behavior
results in loss of freedom. JD Roger Clegg, President and General Counsel of the Center for Equal
Opportunity, argues that, "We don't let children vote, for instance, or noncitizens, or the mentally
incompetent. Why? Because we don't trust them and their judgement...People who commit serious
crimes have shown that they are not trustworthy" so why should they vote unless they've proven that
they've turned over a new leaf. Others fear that felons will in some way vote so that previously
illegal activity will now be
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The Issue Of Illegal Immigrants Essay
Although the constitution gives us many of the rights we enjoy every day some of us are not that
fortunate. Convicted felons in many states have forever lost those rights. Because they have
completed their sentence's and paid their debt to society, shouldn't they be able to have a say in what
goes on in the world that they too live in? Therefore, being able to reinstate their right to vote.
Felons should have the right to vote no matter what their past may be. To get a better idea of how
important this issue is we will be looking at several things. The impact felony disenfranchisement
has on the voting nation, the people who were for and against felony disenfranchisement, which
states allow felons to vote, several facts on the history of disenfranchisement, how other countries
handle felons voting compared to the United States, and the issue of illegal immigrants getting to
vote but not the felons.
The men and women that are released from prison every year face many challenges in reentering the
world. They must find employment, a place to live, and stay out of trouble. So, at first, losing the
right to vote does not sound so important. However, history shows that being an active, participating
member of society helps with rehabilitation. It also can have a major impact on the community and
the elections. The issue of disenfranchisement gained awareness in 2000 after the extremely close
election between republican George W. Bush and Democratic nominee Albert A. Gore. Per
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Should Felony Disenfranchisement Be Abolished?
Should Felony Disenfranchisement be abolished?
Right now, in the United States of America 6.1 million votes are put to waste due to felony
disenfranchisement this essay will consider why so many votes are put to waste, and whether this
law can be justified. Felony disenfranchisement means every prisoner in the United States of
America has their right to vote removed while serving a sentence in prison. The reason certain states
in America, for example Alabama, Arizona and Florida decided to keep this law in place for felons
is to try and reform the prisoners and deter people from committing crimes. Surely reforming
prisoners requires society to show that once time is served they are accepted back into society
restoring the right to vote a way of integrating a reformed person back into society. Felony
disenfranchisement can be traced back to ancient Greek and Roman traditions. Disenfranchisement
was commonly imposed as part of punishment for those convicted of serious crimes, for example
murder and theft.
The American government tries to get as many people in the general public to vote. However, 6.1
million votes are made invalid because of the fact that people serving penal sentences are denied the
right to vote. Statistics actually projected if felons were allowed to vote in the United States of
America the presidential election would have had a turn for a Hillary Clinton outcome . If felony
disenfranchisement were to be abolished in the United States a certain 45th
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Convicted Felons Should Retain The Right to Vote Essay
Individuals convicted of a felony should not lose their right to vote. The right to vote is a birth right
for citizens born in this country. This right is taken for granted by many and is exercised by far too
few. As the United States prepares for its 57th presidential election over five million of its citizens
will be denied their right to participate in the electoral process. Why would such a large number of
people be denied a constitutional right? They have been excluded from voting because they have
been convicted of a felony. A felony is usually considered any crime that could lead to more than a
year in prison. But states can often have differing views of what is considered a felony or a
misdemeanor. Such an ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Thus, the states that continue to exclude all felons permanently are outliers, both within the United
States and in the world (2004)." But, even those individuals who are eligible for the restoration of
their voting rights can have huge hurdles to jump. The arbitrary laws that have been put in place to
disenfranchise convicted felons are unfair and often political. What disqualifies a convicted felon
from voting in one state might not in another. The process of having a convicted felon's right to vote
restored is just as arbitrary.
While some reinstate a felon's rights as soon as they complete their sentence, others force them to
jump through numerous hoops to be able to vote again. The automatic restoration of voting rights
depends on which state the person resides. Indiana for example is one of only a few states that allow
convicted felons to vote upon their release from prison without conditions. Far too many states
require convicted felons to complete onerous tasks to regain their eligibility to vote. The state of
Florida does not automatically restore the right to vote regardless of the offense committed. Florida
has a five to seven year waiting period for all individuals convicted of a felony. After the waiting
period has been completed they must
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Importance Of Voting A Right To Vote
A blazing sun beats down on a desolate parking lot. A man with a clipboard desperately searches for
signatures, begging for his rights to be returned. This man is a felon, and his right to vote has been
taken away. Approximately 5.85 million Americans can't vote due to a felony charge (Newsy).
Although it can be argued that felons have lost their privilege to vote, felon disenfranchisement has
affected and still affects a disproportionate amount of people of color, takes out a huge voter block,
and inhibits the rehabilitation process. Therefore, community members should sign petitions or
contact senators to help felons regain their rights.
Some sources believe felons should not be given the right to vote after having committed a felony,
because voting is a privilege. Once people commit a felony, they lose this privilege. They also
believe that since felons have committed a crime, they do not have the ability to make judgements in
elections. If they made the judgement to commit a crime, they do not have the right mindset to make
a judgement in an election.
These sources believe that voting is a privilege, but voting is a right guaranteed to the American
people. Felons, despite their past crimes, are still American citizens and they don't deserve to have
their right taken away. Furthermore, the idea that felons are incapable of making judgements in
politics because of their crimes is absurd. The whole point of their imprisonment is to rehabilitate
them into society and put
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Is Voting A Right Or A Privilege?
When determining the criteria for a person to lose voting privileges based on them being classified a
felon, I believe we should examine the circumstances surrounding them becoming a felon. If a
person is committing a felony for purposes other than intentionally breaking the law this should
make an impact on the punishment. I think that what any reasonable person would have done in the
circumstances of the offender should be taken into account by the Arkansas State Legislation.
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? This must be determined in order to decide
whether you can take it away as a form of punishment. First, let's define what a right is. A right is
defined as something to which a person is entitled. Most American rights are determined by our
constitution and the Bill of Rights which never explicitly states the right to vote, but certain
Amendments deal specifically with this subject. Next, let's define privilege. A Privilege is a special
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The Consequences Of Felon Disenfranchisement In The United...
Felon disenfranchisement and the variation of state laws on disenfranchisement is a huge issue that
affects the American presidency. For example, if you are convicted felon you may never be able to
vote again depending on the state you reside in. Many states however, allow convicted criminals to
regain their right to vote upon completing their sentence, while other states never take their
convicted criminal's right to vote away from them. As a nation this reveals the division among
states, and the way felon disenfranchisement restricts many Americans from voting.
Felony disenfranchisement impacts racial minorities disproportionately and in this past election
prohibited 6.1 million Americans from voting (Uggen, Larson, Shannon 2016). Blacks make up
36.2% of the prison populations while only making up 12.6% of the U.S. population. Similarly,
hispanics make up only 16.3% of the U.S. population size while making up 21.9% in prisons ("Are
Felon Disenfranchisement Laws a Form of Racial Discrimination?" 2015). Essentially, racial
minorities are disproportionately affected by felony disenfranchisement which is often caused by
discriminatory criminality. These laws restricting voting rights for convicted criminals has only
increased the amount of people restricted by them over the years. The number of disenfranchised
individuals has risen from 1.17 million in 1976 to 6.1 million in 2016 (Uggen, Larson, Shannon
2016).
States have varying laws when it comes to felony
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Example Of Felony Disenfranchisement
Felony Disenfranchisement
Felony disenfranchisement is a concept that has been sweeping the masses as of late parallel to the
high rates of imprisonment. Felony disenfranchisement is believed to have started in 1792 with
Kentucky as only free men of age 21 and older could vote and since then it has become a
phenomenon used by all states except Maine and Vermont. By definition, felony disenfranchisement
is when a person goes to prison for an offense and is simultaneously stripped of several civic duties.
These duties include having the right to vote, fair opportunity when applying to jobs, and not being
able to apply for student loans amongst many others. The problem is becoming even stronger as
time goes by as more and more of our citizens are placed in an imaginary threshold that is kept away
from our modern society. There are a multitude of crafted reasons for why felons are
disenfranchised, but none of them directly point to the reason. Many would say because they are
felons and they deserve it. Many would also say that it is because the time that taxpayers paid for
their facilities should be "split" in a sense with the convicts. The statistics would say that it is
because of race as the rates of disenfranchised felonies and black imprisonment are both soaring
parallel to each other. The point is that there is no exact definition of why felons are disenfranchised.
If it cannot be written into a constitutional law, then why is it an aspect of our society? That is more
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The Time Of Ancient Greeks And Romans
Back to the time of ancient Greeks and romans. The disenfranchisement for felons began throughout
Europe and was referred to as the civil death. Disenfranchisement means to prevent from someone
or an individual the right to vote do to their criminal history in the past with this happening in The
United States it doesn't give the opportunity of ex–felons to have input on any laws that being
passed. For many centuries criminals lost he many rights including their right to enter into contracts,
there right to own fire arms, the right to employment in certain fields, the right to public social
benefits, the right to housing, and the right to vote in the election. English colonist carried this idea
with them as they came to America but the voter's disenfranchisement or felony continued through
the 19th and 20th centuries for many states.
During the reconstruction period the southern states began using disenfranchisement laws similar to
poll taxes, literacy test, and the grandfather clauses as a way to try to minimize the black vote.
General disenfranchisement that had applied to all criminals were tailored particularized crimes that
were mostly committed by blacks than crimes that were committed from whites. While today felony
disenfranchisement many are inherited from an underlying legacy of racist voting restrictions. The
history of disenfranchisement was laid out in a fascinating study byAngela Behrens, Christopher
Uggen and Jeff Manza. They found that state felony bans
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Persuasive Essay On Disenfranchisement
Since the beginning of the United States government, Americans have had the right to vote. This
right is entitled to most citizens of America, but it is not entitled to citizens that have been convicted
of felonies. This is called disenfranchisement; where an ex–felon cannot vote, own a weapon or go
into the army. Specifically, voter disenfranchisement; only two states in the US are not subject to
this law. In the past 40 years due to disenfranchisement the United States criminal justice system has
withheld the voting rights of 6.1 million Americans due to their convictions. Maine and Vermont do
not hold restrictions due to past felonies. With over 3.1 million civilians out of prisons or other
facilities this hurts the overall point of democracy, making it unconstitutional to withhold these
rights that are stated in the amendments for the knowledge of American citizens. With the loss of 6.1
million voters in the election of 2016, this would make a huge impact on the votes in the United
States. The four states that have the most percentage of disenfranchisement are Kentucky (26
percent), Virginia (22 percent), Florida (21 percent), and Tennessee (21 percent). Only two states
have restrictions Maine and Vermont and only 12 states have prison, parole, probation, and post
sentencing. Florida, Iowa, and Kentucky also banned convicts for the rest of their lives. "The felon
and ex–felon populations may be large, but how many of them would actually turn out to vote?
Overall
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The Pros And Cons Of Felon Disenfranchisement
The citizens of the United States of America have a long history of having to fight for their right to
vote, and while women and people of color do have the right, another group of people is facing a
difficult time being able to vote. This other group is the felons, but understandably so: a felon's
ability to make critical decisions for the United country is sure to be questioned. Felon
disenfranchisement serves as a barrier between individuals who are qualified to vote and those who
are not. The reasons that felons are not qualified to make such important decisions for Americans is
that their actions show a lack of good judgement and they show a disregard for the social contract.
The ignorance toward the social contract, the types of felonies committed, and the judgement that
felons have is questioned, and exactly what the impact may be in regard to our society and the future
of our country is explained. There should be a few exceptions, and not all felons should suffer the
same fate that those who committed a serious felony do. The social contract is a careful arrangement
that persons may not be aware that they adhere to. It is simple, "each expects the others to comply,
and in– tends to comply herself. No part of the agreement exists solely to ensure compliance with
the remainder, so that, leaving compliance aside, omitting any of the terms of the agreement would
be regarded as undesirable by at least one of the parties" (Gauthier 3). In short, the society we live in
has
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Persuasive Essay On Voting Rights
Losing your civil right to vote due to a felony conviction diminishes your citizen status within the
United States. The right to vote regardless of race or gender has been a significant struggle that was
won in the 1960's. This accomplishment gave every citizen the equal right to vote. However, most
states follow ancient times when felons are involved by stripping them of their voting rights and
other civil liberties. Over time, people who make bad choices either learn from their mistakes or
keep reoffending. For those who learn, we should not have the right to continue with perpetual
punishment and reinforcing recidivism in a human being trying to making changes to their lives.
The penial systems are not set up for rehabilitation, they are helping to reinforce that bad choices are
forever unforgiven. The restorations of voting rights are essential to a United States citizen,
regardless of choices citizenship will always be attached to your person, thus punishments should
cease once the imposition of sentence has been completed. "Felonies are legal distinctions reserved
for serious crimes versus lower–level offenses called misdemeanors. But over the years, many
nonviolent acts have been classified as felonies." Over time our laws have increased to demand
citizens to conform to what government believes an upstanding citizen should illustrate. However,
the consequences for law breaking citizens are continually attached to their daily lives after
punishment has been served. Concrete barriers have been placed before felons supporting the bad
choices this community made to label them felons because these barriers push them back into the
life they know rather than the life they want or should have. One of the main pushes after
incarceration is employment, but it is a catch because a lot of professions do not hire convicted
felons; without a job living conditions are at a minimal, essentials to everyday life can be
microscopic thus stealing, robbery, or breaking and entering would seem as a quick fix for daily
essentials like food. "Prison reform advocates said the biggest barrier to helping former inmates find
jobs is getting employers to accept someone with a black mark on their record among their
employee
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Essay about Literature Review
Coleman Literature Review 1
Literature Review
Convicted Felons: Should they be allowed to vote?
Writing II
Professor: Melissa Piumelli
Coleman Literature Review 2
Introduction:
The term disenfranchisement or taking away a criminals right to vote, has been around since ancient
Greece and Rome Eras. In Europe, a condition called "civil death" involves the forfeiture of
property, the loss of the right to appear in court and a prohibition on entering into contracts, as well
as loss of voting rights. Convicted felons of ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Some felons even after release suffered from the aftermath resulting from a previous arrest because
they are not sure what rights they do hold after an imprisonment, such as Eric Willem from Roseau
County, Minnesota. Eric Stephen Willem's, who was 25 at the time and had been a convicted felon
since the year of 2004. Unfortunately, for Willem's who was voting for the fourth time, it was an
additional felony to be voting, according to Roseau County Attorney's Office. This sent Willem back
to the place where he did not want to be, jail, for an additional year. Back in 2005, this problem was
at the top of the agenda for H. Clinton and J. Kerry who were trying to boost votes for the
Democrats. After election defeat in 2005, Democrats mend their ways by emphasizing moral values.
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Kerry introduce the Count Every Vote Act, which she
claims is "critical to restoring America's faith in our voting system." Also to be added to the Act, a
provision to ensure that voting
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Felon Disenfranchisement Is The Loss Of The Right Of Vote...
Felon disenfranchisement is the loss of the right to vote for people who have committed felonies.
When researching deeper into felon disenfranchisement, there is an underlying racial factor that
consistently comes up. Some say disenfranchisement of felons is racially oppressive and a threat to
democracy, while some argue that it's functional and that race has no relevance. To start this paper I
will give a brief background on felon disenfranchisement in relation to race. I will examine and
analyze those who believe that "yes," disenfranchisement of felons is heavily rooted in racial
persecution. I will then examine and analyze those who say "no", felon disenfranchisement is
necessary and has no racial impact. After copious amounts of research, I have come to agree with
the "yes" side, because their facts are more persuasive and their use of history is in depth, and as a
whole this side delivered a well rounded argument. In the United States, disenfranchisement laws
vary on a state level, but fall under these four main categories– never lose the right to vote, lost only
while incarcerated (automatic restoration upon release), lost until completion of sentence including
parole and probation, and restoration only by application and Governor's or court action. There are
approximately 6.1 million disenfranchised Americans, 2.2 million of these people are African
Americans, essentially one in thirteen of all African Americans nationally. In four states, the
numbers increase to
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The Use Of Felon And The Laws Impose On Felony Act
One cannot discuss this topic without given the definition of felon and the laws impose on felony
act. Who is a felon? A felon is someone who has been convicted of serious or violence crimes, such
as murder, rape, robbery, and burglary and as a result is punishable more than one year. The
constitution of U.S.A from the voting act prevents someone who has been convicted of felony to
participate in an election; however this enactment is as a result of racial politics (Preuhs R.R).
According to Robert this policy disproportionately affect minority population on blacks and Latino
citizens, and this article is supported with enough evidence that would convince any reader. This
article basically talks about how the minority population of ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
According to Preuhs he said that felon disenfranchisement has remained one of the few legal means
through which a state can directly ban the electoral participation of its citizen. The article mainly
focused it finding on the size of minority population, parity in incarceration rate, the degree of
legislative professionalism became the author's purpose.(Preuh,.R.R.) First and foremost to support
the author's ideas that felon disenfranchisement is enacted to exclude black and Latino citizens from
election as the article statistically highlighted the whole nation with the percentage of blacks or
Latino citizens with whites and the general population, on the national level, 36 percent of the
disenfranchisement population is black, compared to 12 percent of the general population(Fellner
and Mauer 1998:1) that is number of blacks is higher than the general population and the white as
well. The above statistics can be supported that 13 percent of adult male African American are
disenfranchised from voting but only 2 percent of the Adult population as a whole (Fellner and
Manuel 1998:2) and lastly more than 25 percent of adult black men are permanently disenfranchised
in Alabama, Iowa, Mississippi, New Mexico, Washington and Wyoming(Fellner and Manuel) and in
order to incorporate it with the Latino citizens
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The African American Voice
In the United States more than two million people are incarcerated and seven million are under
correctional supervision. There are 13 million adults that have been convicted of a felony and 47
million American have something on their record. Having a felony has attained a newfound
relevance in the United States (King, 2006) . In many states begin a felon come with obstacles both
informal and formal in the lives of people with a felony convicted. In the midst of the growing civil
right movement, the augmented by racially disparate law enforcement and corrections policies the
word "felon" is commonly linked to the African American community. Having a felony conviction
limited housing, employment and educational opportunities. The barriers that of begin a felon
limited the accessing to opportunities that is available to the general population (King, 2006). In the
Unties Sates African Americans have a higher crime rate than any racial groups (Crutchfield,
Nov2007) . The bibliography will provide an overview of the felony disenfranchisement, with an
emphasis silencing the African American voice. Providing details about how disenfranchisement
suppressing voter turnout for the entire African American community . Third, the author will
provide a description the racial impact of felony disenfranchisement. Lastly the author will provide
a conclusion and a brief summary of the insights that were gained from this policy analysis paper.
King, R. S.
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The History Of Felony Disenfranchisement
Felony Disenfranchisement
Disenfranchised citizens should be allowed to vote because it is the first step for the reintegration
process to becoming a law abiding citizen again. Disenfranchising a citizen means to deprive them
of their right to vote or deprive them of a right or privilege. Disenfranchisement has caused
confusion among certain races and the United States government because certain nationalities
suspected that they were being systematically targeted. Felony disenfranchisement literally defies
the eighth amendment. Disenfranchised citizens may feel that they are permanently penalized for a
crime they committed even though they served their sentence, parole, or probation.
The history of voter discrimination led up to felony disenfranchisement. As time passed, laws
changed banning discrimination against voters based on ethnicity, financial class, and gender. When
America was founded in 1776, the only citizens who had a right to vote were white males. In 1787,
federal voting requirements weren't set nationwide they varied from state to state ("History of Voting
Rights," 2017). In 1830, numerous states removed property ownership and religion as a clause for
voting. It wasn't until 1868 when the 14th amendment was passed allowing blacks to be recognized
as citizens and allowing black men to vote, but not without prejudice from state officials. African–
American slaves originally had no voting rights when they were brought to America. The 15th
amendment passed in 1870
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The Issue Of Illegal Immigrants Essay
DOUBLE JEOPARDY
Although the constitution gives us many of the rights we enjoy every day some of us are not that
fortunate. Convicted felons in many states have forever lost those rights. Because they have
completed their sentence's and paid their debt to society, shouldn't they be able to have a say in what
goes on in the world that they too live in? Therefore, being able to reinstate their right to vote.
Felons should have the right to vote no matter what their past may be. To get a better idea of how
important this issue is we will be looking at several things. The impact felony disenfranchisement
has on the voting nation, the people who were for and against felony disenfranchisement, which
states allow felons to vote, several facts on the history of disenfranchisement, how other countries
handle felons voting compared to the United States, and the issue of illegal immigrants getting to
vote but not the felons.
The men and women that are released from prison every year face many challenges in reentering the
world. They must find employment, a place to live, and stay out of trouble. So, at first, losing the
right to vote does not sound so important. However, history shows that being an active, participating
member of society helps with rehabilitation. It also can have a major impact on the community and
the elections. The issue of disenfranchisement gained awareness in 2000 after the extremely close
election between republican George W. Bush and democratic nominee Albert
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Reform Of The Civil Disabilities Of Felons
Reform of the Civil Disabilities of Felons The words "civil death" carry a powerful, fear–inducing
quality and they should. Millions of Americans have experienced the loss of civil rights on varying
levels since the founding of this country over 200 years ago. Many more in other countries
throughout history have experienced the same fate. England adopted the idea of denying convicts
their right to vote from ancient Greece and Rome. In addition to losing the right to vote, England
also took a convict's property, denied them the right to appear in court, and also prohibited them
from entering into contracts. This practice of civil death was carried over from England and
implemented in the colonies when they settled in North America. ("Felony Voting Rights") Although
the application of civil death has altered as the United States of America matured as a country, it
remains as a widely debated topic in current events. Whether felons should regain their civil rights
after they have "paid their debt to society" or not is rarely addressed by the federal government. It is,
however, a topic that is addressed on a state level in many states almost every year. Some believe
that a felon should lose their civil rights indefinitely. Others believe that once someone has served
their sentence and paid their fines and restitution, civil rights should be fully restored. While many
civil disabilities remain in place for felons, 30 states repealed or amended their laws dealing with
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
Essay On Felony Disenfranchisement
6.1 million Americans cannot vote because of a felony conviction, among the 6.1 million are large
groups of the underrepresented. Representation is important when you intend to represent an entire
country, so when 6.1 million voters, which of majority are minorities, are disenfranchised, there is a
massive cut of representation in our system. This is exactly what is happening right now in the
United States. As of 2016, an estimated 6.1 million people were disenfranchised due to a felony
conviction. This figure has escalated dramatically in recent decades as the population under criminal
justice supervision has increased. Even those who have completed their sentences in the ten states
(Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Alabama, Florida, and
Delaware) that disenfranchise people, post–sentence, make up over 50 percent of the entire
disenfranchised population; totaling almost 3.1 million people. If these votes were to be restored,
representation would increase, leading to an equal ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Felony disenfranchisement operates contrary to the goals of ensuring public safety and reducing
reoffending by alienating from society those individuals that the criminal justice system is
simultaneously attempting to reintegrate. Further, as the Committee has noted, state
disenfranchisement laws are problematic not only due to the vast numbers of potential voters they
affect, but also their disproportionate impact on racial minorities, particularly African Americans
and Hispanics. Further, many of these laws extend punishment beyond the walls of the prison by
continuing to disenfranchise individuals who are on probation, parole or have completed their full
sentences. For this reason, it is particularly important that the Committee urge the United States to
provide its rationale for continuing to deprive individuals with felony convictions of the right to vote
after they are no longer
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The Argument For Voting Rights
Shaw provides a good point when he states: "Going through rehabilitation and reintegration, ex–
felons become part of a law–abiding society with the same privileges as others in the society,
proponents for voting rights argue." If they go through these things to become a part of society
again, then why are they not allowed the right to vote? This must be an upsetting process for those
felons that want to become a part of society again and actually care to make a difference. All that
they want to do is to be granted one of the basic fundamental rights guaranteed to citizens. I mean
that's the least they should get after going through the process that they do. It is only fair for them to
obtain the right to vote again because at the end of the day they did what was required of them to
become a part of society again and what is the use of that if they cannot even vote?
Felony disenfranchisement is not something that should be in place after that felon has served the
sentencing that they faced. According to Speckhdardt, "Felony disenfranchisement removes human
dignity by relegating people to second–class citizen status and making them subject to a state that
has no electoral accountability to those that have been convicted of felonies." I agree with this
statement because that is exactly what felony disenfranchisement does. It takes away the dignity of
those ex–felons who are citizens and should have an equal right to vote. They should not be made to
feel any less just because
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Equality Is The Central Point Of Discussion
Equality In America Throughout the history of America, equality has always been the central point
of discussion in society. Many believe that America has reached the point of equality where
everyone is equal. Obviously this is not the case, but we have made great strides to reach a world
where everyone is equal. However, America has made great improvements in making equality
relevant in todays society. Although contemporary society has succeeded in making "equality" a
reality, I claim that it has also failed in addressing this theme appropriately. America has always
been associated with the theme and value of equality. America's history is thick and rich with the
major theme of equality. For instance, the abolishment of slavery, which ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
USAID quotes, "If we can erase these inequities and put women on equal footing with men– we
know we can unlock human potential on a transformational scale". The government agency's push
towards equality for women will not just benefit women, but many other people. For instance,
USAID quotes, "just by empowering women farmers with the same access to land, new
technologies and capital as men, we can increase crop yields by as much as 30 percent and feed an
additional 150 million people". This agency is a work in progress, but there mindset is on equality
for all, which is magnificent. Contemporary society has been able to keep the value of equality
relevant throughout America. The strides made by society in order to reach equality for all genders
is tremendous, yet society is still in the dark over equality in other areas. While society in America
has been able to keep the value of equal germane, it has also failed in making this value a reality.
Writer Joseph E. Stiglitz, author of the"Great Divide", quotes, "the gap between aspiration and
reality could hardly be wider". Stiglitz is pessimistic about the value of equality in America and how
it has been addressed. Stiglitz quotes, "Today, the United States has less equality of opportunity than
almost any other advanced industrial country, study after study has exposed the myth that America is
the land of opportunity". Now, Stiglitz is making a huge statement by saying that
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Should Felons Have The Right?
Should felons have the right to vote? Felons are people who have been convicted of a felony. Felony
is a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and
usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death. In Maine and Vermont,
felons never lose their right to vote, even while they are incarcerated. Vermont's 1793 Constitution
stipulates that residents can lose their right to vote only if convicted of voter fraud. In Florida, Lowa
and Virginia, felons and ex–felons permanently lose their right to vote. Eleven states restrict voting
even after a person has completed their prison sentence and finished probation or parole. Twenty
states require completion of parole and probation before voting is allowed, and fourteen states allow
felons to vote after they leave prison. In 1789, Kentucky became the first U.S. state to ban convicted
criminals from voting. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that felon
disenfranchisement is a violation of the Voting Rights Act in her May 4, 2006 dissenting opinion in
Hayden v. Pataki. Ex–felons should be able to vote because they served their punishment and now
they are out so they probably did not do anything serious like first–degree felony: murder, rape,
kidnapping, arson, fraud. Second–degree felony: aggravated assault, felony assault, arson,
manslaughter, possession of a controlled substance, child molestation.
The Voting Rights Act, signed into law by President Lyndon
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Essay On Felon Disenfranchisement
The land of the free, or so we claim. The land of opportunities and the land where dreams come true.
The land that grants the freedom of bearing arms and the land where everyone who feeds on it has
the freedom of speech, other than felons of course. Felons are perceived as the embarrassment of our
nation. People believe that those who commit crimes shall pay for their actions but the question is
what happens after they've served their time and taken responsibility for what they have done? Our
nation has built a system in which those who have committed crimes will forever be punished. Once
a person is labeled a felon, he or she will face a lifetime of discrimination. Life will seem more free
behind bars than the new world they are put in. Those ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Felon disenfranchisement can affect society as a whole by further marginalizing and alienating
formerly incarcerated individuals, thus forming a community of ex–felons excluded from civil
society. Losing one's voting rights extends feelings of not being wanted and a feeling of
powerlessness. Those who are stripped of their basic voting rights will receive the message that
what they have to say, mainly about who they want to represent them, does not matter. If a group of
people don't believe they are seen as a part of society, they are less likely to engage and contribute to
their community. By categorizing all ex–offenders together and decreeing disenfranchisement,
communities will divide in a manner of whose voice matters and whose does not. Compared to other
world leading countries, the united states has arguably the most politically divided communities but
the problem lies on whether people can express their opinions or not, in this case through voting.
Alexander writes "No other country in the world disenfranchises people who are released from
prison in a manner even remotely resembling the United States" (158). This mass
disenfranchisement creates a country where its citizens have no say in who represents them and their
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
Should Felons Be Disenfranchised?
In 2016, about 2.5% of the adult US population, or 6.1 million potential voters, were deprived of the
right to vote because of a felony conviction. (Kozlowska) A felony is defined as "a crime, typically
one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by
imprisonment for more than one year or by death," including murder, the sale or manufacture of
drugs, treason, and even tax evasion. (Google) Disenfranchisement is the state of being deprived of
a right or privilege, especially the right to vote. The question of whether or not ex–felons should be
disenfranchised is still discussed today; some believe that ex–felons can repay their debt to society
by not voting, and some, vice versa. Unfortunately, ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
In addition, criminal disenfranchisement laws were created. Even though whites claimed them to be
race–neutral, they were effectively racist in arresting and disenfranchising blacks over whites. The
measures evolved into laws, and over a few years, they started to disenfranchise people for modern–
day felonies as well as minor crimes, solely to keep blacks from voting and taking part in political
activities. In 1901, Delegate Carter Glass of Virginia described felon disenfranchisement as a plan to
"eliminate the darkey as a political factor in [the] state in less than five years." (Bouie) Many years
later, in the 1960's, the Civil Rights Act resulted in courts overturning and outlawing the South's
restrictive voting rights, and voting percentages of blacks doubled. However, most felony
disenfranchisement laws stayed. But issues with felony disenfranchisement are still relevant today.
There are still more African Americans disenfranchised in America than any other race because of
the lingering aspects of disenfranchisement history and the racism that still exists in society today.
One in thirteen African Americans of voting age are disenfranchised, resulting in a rate more than
four times greater than that of non–African Americans; over 7.4 percent of the adult African
American population is disenfranchised compared to 1.8
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Essay about Felon Disenfranchisement
The root of Felon Disenfranchisement can be traced back to Greek and Roman laws. Where any
person convicted of an infamous crime would lose his or her right to participate in polis. In Rome
they would lose their right to participate in suffrage and to serve in the Roman legions. With the
founding of the United States of America, the US Constitution gave the right to establish voting
laws to the states. From 1776 – 1821 eleven states included felony disenfranchisement in their laws
(Voter Registration Protection Act). By 1868 when the fourteenth Amendment was enacted eighteen
states had adopted disenfranchisement laws. After the Civil War felony Disenfranchisement laws
were used along with poll taxes and literary test to exclude African ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
However, that leaves a whole 33percent of ex felons that do not commit another crime and want to
be productive members of society an ''earn'' there voting rights back. Granted, being that statistics
show a greater number of reoffending felons this is good cause to why society and the communities
these ex felons reside are against felons voting. On the contrary State data shows that most prison
admissions are for probation or parole violations. Maybe that's because punishment is so light: 79
percent of state inmates are released before reaching their maximum sentences. In other words,
maybe they aren't afraid of being reincarcerated because they know they'll never serve their full
terms and continue to commit certain crimes as a cry for help. Admittedly, As Roger Clegg,
president of the conservative advocacy group Center for Equal Opportunity, neatly puts it, "If you
aren't willing to follow the law, you can't claim the right to make the law for everyone else" (Time
.com). This guy is totally credible and makes a lot of sense and a lot of people will agree with this.
But America allows ex–convicts to marry, reproduce, buy beer, own property and drive. They don't
lose their freedom of
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
Felony Disenfranchisement
Should Felons be Allowed to Vote? 1 In this essay, I will be in support of felons having their voting
rights restored after serving their prison sentences and completing all terms and conditions of
probation or parole successfully. My reasons for supporting the restoration of felons' voting rights
are because voting is a "right" under the Constitution of the United States. After a person serves
their prison sentence; some ex–felons have the ability to be and remain rehabilitated and live
productive lives. Also, the laws are changing making it easier to be charged as a felon. Most of the
people that are against felons voting claim that they make bad judgments because they do not abide
... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
In those twenty states people who are in prison, on parole, and on probation cannot Should Felons
be Allowed to Vote? 3 vote. Four states, California, Colorado, Connecticut, and New York, do not
allow prisoners and parolees to vote, but people with any criminal past, even those on probation, can
vote. Thirteen states, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Utah,
only disenfranchise felons while they are in prison. Everyone else, including felons, parolees, and
those on probation are allowed to vote. In two states, New Hampshire and Maine, everyone has a
right to vote, including prisoners. There are eleven states, Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Florida,
Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wyoming, which make it
exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for some felons to regain their right to vote. Most of these
states do not allow criminals who committed serious felonies such as rape, murder, and kidnapping
to vote without an action by the Board of Parole or the governor of the
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...

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The United States And The Civil Right Movement

  • 1. The United States And The Civil Right Movement Introduction In the United States more than two million people are incarcerated and seven million are under correctional supervision. There are 13 million adults that have been convicted of a felony and 47 million American have something on their record. Having a felony has attained a newfound relevance in the United States (King, 2006) . In many states begin a felon come with obstacles both informal and formal in the lives of people with a felony convicted. In the midst of the growing civil right movement, the augmented by racially disparate law enforcement and corrections policies the word "felon" is commonly linked to the African American community. Having a felony conviction limited housing, employment and educational opportunities. The barriers that of begin a felon limited the accessing to opportunities that is available to the general population (King, 2006). In the Unties Sates African Americans have a higher crime rate than any racial groups (Crutchfield, Nov2007) . The bibliography will provide an overview of the felony disenfranchisement, with an emphasis silencing the African American voice. This paper will provide details about how disenfranchisement suppressing voter turnout for the entire African American community . It will also provide a description the racial impact of felony disenfranchisement. Lastly the author will provide a conclusion and a brief summary of the insights that were gained from this policy analysis paper. ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 2.
  • 3. Should Felons Be A Crime? People who are felons have their rights and freedom taken away forever because they make a mistake in life. How is that fair? Think about this for a minute; if a person gets a trafficking charge or three DUI's within five years, that person now has a felony record and is labeled a felon. As punishment the now felon are sentenced to prison for a time declared by a judge and on parole for some time. Though the time has been served a felon is still at large. One non–violent crime stays on your record forever? Some believe that just because a person committed a crime that all civil rights should be taken away. Why? The "felon" label, along with the negative social and legal implications that accompany it, is essentially blind to the severity of the underlying crime. The convicted felon definition, the individuals that comprise this particular class include all social economic, racial, ethic, and gender categorizations. Although the term felony commonly refers to serious crimes punishable by imprisonment for at least a year, or by death, it may include minor crimes (Saxonhouse, 2004). The convicted felons classification can be divided into two subcategories: Current felons– those who are currently incarcerated, on probation, or on parole; and ex–felons– those who have completed their sentences and are no longer under control of the criminal justice system. Both violent and non–violent felons are measured equivalents within the current and ex– felon groups (McGuire, 2014). ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 4.
  • 5. The Land Of The Free, And The Home Of Our Brave America has, in modern times, come to be considered a shining beacon of Western democracy, a pillar of human rights justice, and a global model for a constitution–based government. The American government itself created this stellar image, and has completely bought into the notion of its supremacy in matters pertaining to democracy and human rights protection, as evinced by the self–applauding rhetoric of politicians and the media, accompanied by the vehement defamation of the governments of other nations. American citizens themselves, seem to subscribe to these sentiments, believing their beloved country to be "the land of the free, and the home of the brave". This characterization of American society is, at best, only applicable to its recent history, given its sordid past of slavery, Jim Crow, xenophobic policies, and mass marginalization of minorities, all completely antithetical to the notions of freedom and bravery. At worst, this depiction is a grossly romanticized version of even its modern–day activities, given the problems of mass incarceration, residential segregation and police brutality against minorities. A salient theme among a distressingly significant number of America's problem is the issue of race. Systemic biases against specific races seem to feature prevalently in problematic public policy. The African–American population, particularly, always seem to be on the receiving end of the brunt of policies with racial elements. Among the plethora of policies ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 6.
  • 7. Should Felons Have The Right To Vote Essay Should Felons Have the Right to Vote? Millions of Americans lose the right to vote due to past felony convictions. While majority of Americans have completed their sentence, they are still not afforded the opportunity to vote. In some states voting rights of felons are terminated all together while other states allow felons who have completed their sentence to regain their voting rights. Felon disenfranchisement is not being allowed to vote after committing a felony. Felon Disenfranchisement takes a toll on our society by placing limits on the amount of possible state votes, and discontinues voting rights in some states. A vast number of citizens believe that felons should not have the right to vote. Felony disenfranchisement places limitations on representation for election votes which affects the final decision on votes. "In fact, 75 percent of disenfranchised voters live in their communities, either under probation or parole supervision or having completed their ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Constitution does not allow excessive sanctions. It also calls for punishment that is suitable for the offense. If all felons are excluded from voting would go against this amendment. To employ this practice would cause a violation of our Eight Amendment right. All citizens should be allowed to vote to refrain from violating this right. Furthermore, ex–felons should be allowed to vote because it would help them while being re– introduced into society. The criminals would learn the value of the law to strengthen their participating in common practices. Even prisoners would come to respect the law and contribute to the "common good" with voting rights. It would be helpful for these individuals because they would be able to become important to society rather than a menace. Criminals would benefit our society more if they are treated equally for their contribution of voting rather than as an ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 8.
  • 9. Essay about A Call to Action: Opening the Ballot for... "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 ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... But the" point of incarceration is to make the convicted offender suitable to re–enter society" (Hull). This in turn means if the time of conviction is up then they are allowed to attain their rights as returning citizens. It is an assumption that race is a main factor in felony disenfranchisement because it prevents political involvement from African Americans and other minority races who are convicted of crimes that offenses are underlined in Felony Disenfranchisement laws that Haygood suggest are "offenses considered to be committed by the majority of blacks." It could be supported that "more than one– third of the total disenfranchised population are black men" (Fellner). Due to these numbers the minority is disproportionally represented because of the astronomical amount of people in one race who are prohibited from voting due to their criminal activity. This is an unfair advantage to those superior to the inferior because the majority of political and social interest adequately reflect one class. This class has one priority which is to shape an economy that ensures their class and the standing in which they have in the country's political decisions as the primary facilitators. This of course warrants merit because this class has found a way to limit the influence that minorities have by establishing Felony Disenfranchisement ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 10.
  • 11. Should Felons Be A Crime? Ex– felons should have the right to vote. A felon is someone who has committed a serious crime. A felony is "a serious crime, characterized under federal law and many state statutes as any offense punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year" ("Convicted"). Felon disenfranchisement is "Disenfranchisement is the taking away of voting rights" ("–Felon"). Ex– felons having served their debts to society should be treated like humans and doing that they should have their God given right to vote. When a person commits a crime, depending on the severity of the crime they can go to jail, or even prison, but the punishment does not always end there. In some states felons lose many rights, from rights to owning specific items to even losing money from paying fines. One of the most important rights they can lose is the right to vote; "states decide who is a criminal and whether or when that group can vote" (Manza 21). While leaving the power to the states Congress has imposed very important limitations on the state's allowance to disqualify citizens from their right to vote. However the treatment of ex–felons varies from state to state. Felon disenfranchisement is deeply rooted in history, going back to ancient Greece and Rome. None of this making it okay, just simply a problem that needs to be solved. Ex–felons should have the right to vote. Violent crimes are not the majority of crimes that are linked to felon disenfranchisement. These crimes only make up close ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 12.
  • 13. Pros And Cons Of Felon Disenfranchisement In the United States in 1800 felony disenfranchisement did not exist. After the war ended southern states were bitter over their loss of one of their biggest economic staples, slavery. Racial discrimination was common in those times and most people didn't want African Americans and other former slaves to be able to contribute in one of the most important duties of citizenship. So, states began to make laws to take away the rights of someone who had committed a crime in an attempt to take away the voting rights of African Americans who at that time made up the majority of people who had some sort of time in jail. Then by 1870 eighty percent of the states in the U.S. had laws restricting felons from the right to vote. Using felon disenfranchisement laws divides the people of the United States and should not be allowed. Image by Pexels Currently in the United States, only 12 states allow felons to vote after they have completed their time in prison and 2 states that actually allow felons to vote while in prison. While 19 states allow it after the sentence, parole, and probation and there are three states where felons are completely banned from voting for the rest of their lives. For those nineteen states that allow it after parole and probation, that is in essence still taking away their rights for most of their lives because depending on the crime probation can last as long as 35 years. Felon disenfranchisement creates a racial divide in the United States and can affect the ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 14.
  • 15. Felons And The Voting Rights Act Felons are people who have been convicted of a felony. Felony is a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death. In Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even while they are incarcerated. Vermont's 1793 Constitution stipulates that residents can lose their right to vote only if convicted of voter fraud. In Florida, Lowa and Virginia, felons and ex–felons permanently lose their right to vote. Eleven states restrict voting even after a person has completed their prison sentence and finished probation or parole. Twenty states require completion of parole and probation before voting is allowed, and fourteen states allow felons to vote after they leave prison. Florida and Texas each disenfranchise more than 600,000 people. In 1789, Kentucky became the first U.S. state to ban convicted criminals from voting. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that felon disenfranchisement is a violation of the Voting Rights Act in her May 4, 2006 dissenting opinion in Hayden v. Pataki. Ex–felons should be able to vote because they served their time and now they are out. Hayden v. Pataki is a legal challenge to New York State 's law disenfranchising individuals convicted of felonies while in prison and on parole. The initial pro se complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, by Joseph Hayden on September 12, ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 16.
  • 17. Should Convicted Felons Have The Right Of Vote? Jason Reeves Mrs. Joseph ELA 6/7/17 Should convicted felons have the right to vote? How would you feel if one mistake caused one of your main rights as citizens to be taken away? Today, people who have paid their dues are denied their innate right to vote and to participate in decisions that governs their lives. Convicted felons who served their time have an innate right to vote and failure to allow ex–felons to vote has a disproportionate impact on my minority communities. Having the right to vote is a part of being an American just like making a mistake is a part of being human. President Obama said it best "...while the people in our prisons have made some mistakes – and sometimes big mistakes – they are ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... In fact, ex–felons who have learned from their mistakes can offer a different perspective when creating laws. This perspective can help create laws that prevent others from committing similar crimes. If a felon has paid his debt to society and turned his life around they should have the right to vote. Before the Civil War, there were no federal laws to protect voting rights. Only white males had the right to vote. In 1870, the 15th Amendment was established which stated "Specifically that the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged on the basis of race, or previous condition of servitude" (Introduction to Federal Voting Rights Laws). This amendment gives all Americans the right to be a voice of change for the people by electing officials who will make a difference in their communities. Unfortunately, one mistake can cause you to lose this right forever. As stated by Eric H. Holder, JD, US Attorney General, in his Feb. 11, 2014, speech; "Across this country today, an estimated 5.8 million Americans of our fellow citizens are prohibited from voting because of a current or previous felony conviction. That's more than the individual populations of 31 U.S. States. And although well over a century has passed since post–Reconstruction states used these measures to strip African–Americans of their most fundamental rights, the impact of felony disenfranchisement on modern communities of color remains both ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 18.
  • 19. Essay On Disenfranchisement During this year's election disenfranchisement has come up in the news practically in Virgina where the Governor Terry McAuliffe's has decided to restore the right for felons to vote. Now there are many people who are angry with this being done some might see it as a political move other might see at as him doing the right thing for the voters. The two sides both present good arguments for the public to hear but this is not something that just got famous during this election many people have been wanting this to happen all over the U.S. for a while now and now that it has many people are mad while some are happy that something finally got done. Now there are 3 states that allow felons to vote after incarceration and more might still be on the way. Disenfranchisement is not something that started in our era it has been going on since early America "colonist brought it to North ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Since Southern people were still mad that African Americans were citizens now, could no longer be slaves, and that they may vote freely. So what many states did was enacted disenfranchisement laws that enabled blacks to vote. How they did this was by targeting offenses that were mostly likely being committed by African Americans. Many other people believe that this law was also made since they got rid of the property test so the wealthy people wanted to get rid of lower class voters and did this by enacting disenfranchisement. Even back then people started to form opinions about this and had to be for it and others had to be against it. Whatever your opinion may be on disenfranchisement it is always good to look at the two sides. This is because you may want to see if one side might be better than the other or just to see the other side's argument. There are tons pros and cons on this subject and many people have many different things that they want to say about this. There are many pros to this subject one of them being trust, felons get ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 20.
  • 21. Pros And Cons Of Felony Disenfranchisement eligible for public assistance and it is more likely that a person will return to prison once they have already been. Forty–eight states and the District of Columbia deny prisoners the right to vote. Felony disenfranchisement policies have a disproportionate impact on communities of color. Black Americans of voting age are more than four times more likely to lose their voting rights than the rest of the adult population, with one of every 13 black adults disenfranchised nationally. In total, 2.2 million black citizens are banned from voting. In 2007 more black men were disenfranchised than in 1870, the year the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified prohibiting laws that explicitly deny the right to vote on the basis of race. When someone has been convicted of a felony they lose their right to vote. Voting is one of our most important rights, as it grants us the ability to induce change, by taking away a person's right to vote, they are no longer able to participate and political changes that may very well affect them. Country's Greatest Impediment to Minority Political Participation While felon disenfranchisement has been a longstanding practice in many states, in recent decades, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of citizens disqualified from voting because of it. Since 1976, the number has climbed from roughly 1.2 million to approximately 6.1 million. Nationwide, nearly one in seven black men are either temporarily or permanently disenfranchised as a ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 22.
  • 23. Felony Disenfranchisement And Its Effects On The State Of... Felony disenfranchisement is a law that was made in the 20th century. Disenfranchisement refers to restrictions on which convicted felons are not allowed to vote. The United States' disenfranchisement law places drastic effects on felons in their state of residency by preventing them from voting. English colonists brought disenfranchisement to America as a punishment for felons' criminal behavior. Committing a crime showed that they were unfit to be included in political events. There is a lot of controversy about Disenfranchisement laws. Disenfranchisement varies in different states Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even when they are incarcerated. With this law that was made a lot of people thought differently about it. There were many pros and cons and brought up a lot of controversy. Some say its injustice like and others say it is perfectly fine because they are still citizens of the U.S and they are already serving a punishment by imprisonment. Other states like Florida, Iowa, and Virginia both felons and ex–felons lose their voting rights permanently. (W. Underhill, 2016). Twenty–nine states had laws on the books at the time of the ratification of the Constitution. Laws such as this were borne out of concept of a punitive criminal justice system. Around 1870 many southern states broadened felony disenfranchisement and started to pay more attention to crimes committed by African Americans. This was used with the requirements of the Fifteenth ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 24.
  • 25. Essay On Felony Disenfranchisement Felony disenfranchisement has been a growing issue in our society, 6.1 million people are not able to vote this year because of it. Felony disenfranchisement prohibits the voting rights of prisoners and varies state to state on the severity of prohibition of voting rights. The severity ranges from not being able to vote in jail to not being able to vote until you submit an application to the government which in Florida has a minimum of 5 years. This hinders their voice in the government and limits what say they have in how our government is run; taking away part of their free speech. The origin of felony disenfranchisement starts as far back as ancient Greece where those subjected to atimia ("dishonor") were unable to participate in public life style such as; "not being able to petition their government, voting, holding office, instituting any criminal or civil actions against citizens, fighting in the army, or receiving any sort of welfare–type public assistance." In European practices there was civil death where the individual was stripped of their civil rights. American legal system borrowed from English common law, forfeiture of ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... By taking away their right to vote they are showing the offender and society that criminal behavior results in loss of freedom. JD Roger Clegg, President and General Counsel of the Center for Equal Opportunity, argues that, "We don't let children vote, for instance, or noncitizens, or the mentally incompetent. Why? Because we don't trust them and their judgement...People who commit serious crimes have shown that they are not trustworthy" so why should they vote unless they've proven that they've turned over a new leaf. Others fear that felons will in some way vote so that previously illegal activity will now be ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 26.
  • 27. The Issue Of Illegal Immigrants Essay Although the constitution gives us many of the rights we enjoy every day some of us are not that fortunate. Convicted felons in many states have forever lost those rights. Because they have completed their sentence's and paid their debt to society, shouldn't they be able to have a say in what goes on in the world that they too live in? Therefore, being able to reinstate their right to vote. Felons should have the right to vote no matter what their past may be. To get a better idea of how important this issue is we will be looking at several things. The impact felony disenfranchisement has on the voting nation, the people who were for and against felony disenfranchisement, which states allow felons to vote, several facts on the history of disenfranchisement, how other countries handle felons voting compared to the United States, and the issue of illegal immigrants getting to vote but not the felons. The men and women that are released from prison every year face many challenges in reentering the world. They must find employment, a place to live, and stay out of trouble. So, at first, losing the right to vote does not sound so important. However, history shows that being an active, participating member of society helps with rehabilitation. It also can have a major impact on the community and the elections. The issue of disenfranchisement gained awareness in 2000 after the extremely close election between republican George W. Bush and Democratic nominee Albert A. Gore. Per ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 28.
  • 29. Should Felony Disenfranchisement Be Abolished? Should Felony Disenfranchisement be abolished? Right now, in the United States of America 6.1 million votes are put to waste due to felony disenfranchisement this essay will consider why so many votes are put to waste, and whether this law can be justified. Felony disenfranchisement means every prisoner in the United States of America has their right to vote removed while serving a sentence in prison. The reason certain states in America, for example Alabama, Arizona and Florida decided to keep this law in place for felons is to try and reform the prisoners and deter people from committing crimes. Surely reforming prisoners requires society to show that once time is served they are accepted back into society restoring the right to vote a way of integrating a reformed person back into society. Felony disenfranchisement can be traced back to ancient Greek and Roman traditions. Disenfranchisement was commonly imposed as part of punishment for those convicted of serious crimes, for example murder and theft. The American government tries to get as many people in the general public to vote. However, 6.1 million votes are made invalid because of the fact that people serving penal sentences are denied the right to vote. Statistics actually projected if felons were allowed to vote in the United States of America the presidential election would have had a turn for a Hillary Clinton outcome . If felony disenfranchisement were to be abolished in the United States a certain 45th ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 30.
  • 31. Convicted Felons Should Retain The Right to Vote Essay Individuals convicted of a felony should not lose their right to vote. The right to vote is a birth right for citizens born in this country. This right is taken for granted by many and is exercised by far too few. As the United States prepares for its 57th presidential election over five million of its citizens will be denied their right to participate in the electoral process. Why would such a large number of people be denied a constitutional right? They have been excluded from voting because they have been convicted of a felony. A felony is usually considered any crime that could lead to more than a year in prison. But states can often have differing views of what is considered a felony or a misdemeanor. Such an ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Thus, the states that continue to exclude all felons permanently are outliers, both within the United States and in the world (2004)." But, even those individuals who are eligible for the restoration of their voting rights can have huge hurdles to jump. The arbitrary laws that have been put in place to disenfranchise convicted felons are unfair and often political. What disqualifies a convicted felon from voting in one state might not in another. The process of having a convicted felon's right to vote restored is just as arbitrary. While some reinstate a felon's rights as soon as they complete their sentence, others force them to jump through numerous hoops to be able to vote again. The automatic restoration of voting rights depends on which state the person resides. Indiana for example is one of only a few states that allow convicted felons to vote upon their release from prison without conditions. Far too many states require convicted felons to complete onerous tasks to regain their eligibility to vote. The state of Florida does not automatically restore the right to vote regardless of the offense committed. Florida has a five to seven year waiting period for all individuals convicted of a felony. After the waiting period has been completed they must ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 32.
  • 33. Importance Of Voting A Right To Vote A blazing sun beats down on a desolate parking lot. A man with a clipboard desperately searches for signatures, begging for his rights to be returned. This man is a felon, and his right to vote has been taken away. Approximately 5.85 million Americans can't vote due to a felony charge (Newsy). Although it can be argued that felons have lost their privilege to vote, felon disenfranchisement has affected and still affects a disproportionate amount of people of color, takes out a huge voter block, and inhibits the rehabilitation process. Therefore, community members should sign petitions or contact senators to help felons regain their rights. Some sources believe felons should not be given the right to vote after having committed a felony, because voting is a privilege. Once people commit a felony, they lose this privilege. They also believe that since felons have committed a crime, they do not have the ability to make judgements in elections. If they made the judgement to commit a crime, they do not have the right mindset to make a judgement in an election. These sources believe that voting is a privilege, but voting is a right guaranteed to the American people. Felons, despite their past crimes, are still American citizens and they don't deserve to have their right taken away. Furthermore, the idea that felons are incapable of making judgements in politics because of their crimes is absurd. The whole point of their imprisonment is to rehabilitate them into society and put ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 34.
  • 35. Is Voting A Right Or A Privilege? When determining the criteria for a person to lose voting privileges based on them being classified a felon, I believe we should examine the circumstances surrounding them becoming a felon. If a person is committing a felony for purposes other than intentionally breaking the law this should make an impact on the punishment. I think that what any reasonable person would have done in the circumstances of the offender should be taken into account by the Arkansas State Legislation. 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? This must be determined in order to decide whether you can take it away as a form of punishment. First, let's define what a right is. A right is defined as something to which a person is entitled. Most American rights are determined by our constitution and the Bill of Rights which never explicitly states the right to vote, but certain Amendments deal specifically with this subject. Next, let's define privilege. A Privilege is a special ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 36.
  • 37. The Consequences Of Felon Disenfranchisement In The United... Felon disenfranchisement and the variation of state laws on disenfranchisement is a huge issue that affects the American presidency. For example, if you are convicted felon you may never be able to vote again depending on the state you reside in. Many states however, allow convicted criminals to regain their right to vote upon completing their sentence, while other states never take their convicted criminal's right to vote away from them. As a nation this reveals the division among states, and the way felon disenfranchisement restricts many Americans from voting. Felony disenfranchisement impacts racial minorities disproportionately and in this past election prohibited 6.1 million Americans from voting (Uggen, Larson, Shannon 2016). Blacks make up 36.2% of the prison populations while only making up 12.6% of the U.S. population. Similarly, hispanics make up only 16.3% of the U.S. population size while making up 21.9% in prisons ("Are Felon Disenfranchisement Laws a Form of Racial Discrimination?" 2015). Essentially, racial minorities are disproportionately affected by felony disenfranchisement which is often caused by discriminatory criminality. These laws restricting voting rights for convicted criminals has only increased the amount of people restricted by them over the years. The number of disenfranchised individuals has risen from 1.17 million in 1976 to 6.1 million in 2016 (Uggen, Larson, Shannon 2016). States have varying laws when it comes to felony ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 38.
  • 39. Example Of Felony Disenfranchisement Felony Disenfranchisement Felony disenfranchisement is a concept that has been sweeping the masses as of late parallel to the high rates of imprisonment. Felony disenfranchisement is believed to have started in 1792 with Kentucky as only free men of age 21 and older could vote and since then it has become a phenomenon used by all states except Maine and Vermont. By definition, felony disenfranchisement is when a person goes to prison for an offense and is simultaneously stripped of several civic duties. These duties include having the right to vote, fair opportunity when applying to jobs, and not being able to apply for student loans amongst many others. The problem is becoming even stronger as time goes by as more and more of our citizens are placed in an imaginary threshold that is kept away from our modern society. There are a multitude of crafted reasons for why felons are disenfranchised, but none of them directly point to the reason. Many would say because they are felons and they deserve it. Many would also say that it is because the time that taxpayers paid for their facilities should be "split" in a sense with the convicts. The statistics would say that it is because of race as the rates of disenfranchised felonies and black imprisonment are both soaring parallel to each other. The point is that there is no exact definition of why felons are disenfranchised. If it cannot be written into a constitutional law, then why is it an aspect of our society? That is more ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 40.
  • 41. The Time Of Ancient Greeks And Romans Back to the time of ancient Greeks and romans. The disenfranchisement for felons began throughout Europe and was referred to as the civil death. Disenfranchisement means to prevent from someone or an individual the right to vote do to their criminal history in the past with this happening in The United States it doesn't give the opportunity of ex–felons to have input on any laws that being passed. For many centuries criminals lost he many rights including their right to enter into contracts, there right to own fire arms, the right to employment in certain fields, the right to public social benefits, the right to housing, and the right to vote in the election. English colonist carried this idea with them as they came to America but the voter's disenfranchisement or felony continued through the 19th and 20th centuries for many states. During the reconstruction period the southern states began using disenfranchisement laws similar to poll taxes, literacy test, and the grandfather clauses as a way to try to minimize the black vote. General disenfranchisement that had applied to all criminals were tailored particularized crimes that were mostly committed by blacks than crimes that were committed from whites. While today felony disenfranchisement many are inherited from an underlying legacy of racist voting restrictions. The history of disenfranchisement was laid out in a fascinating study byAngela Behrens, Christopher Uggen and Jeff Manza. They found that state felony bans ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 42.
  • 43. Persuasive Essay On Disenfranchisement Since the beginning of the United States government, Americans have had the right to vote. This right is entitled to most citizens of America, but it is not entitled to citizens that have been convicted of felonies. This is called disenfranchisement; where an ex–felon cannot vote, own a weapon or go into the army. Specifically, voter disenfranchisement; only two states in the US are not subject to this law. In the past 40 years due to disenfranchisement the United States criminal justice system has withheld the voting rights of 6.1 million Americans due to their convictions. Maine and Vermont do not hold restrictions due to past felonies. With over 3.1 million civilians out of prisons or other facilities this hurts the overall point of democracy, making it unconstitutional to withhold these rights that are stated in the amendments for the knowledge of American citizens. With the loss of 6.1 million voters in the election of 2016, this would make a huge impact on the votes in the United States. The four states that have the most percentage of disenfranchisement are Kentucky (26 percent), Virginia (22 percent), Florida (21 percent), and Tennessee (21 percent). Only two states have restrictions Maine and Vermont and only 12 states have prison, parole, probation, and post sentencing. Florida, Iowa, and Kentucky also banned convicts for the rest of their lives. "The felon and ex–felon populations may be large, but how many of them would actually turn out to vote? Overall ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 44.
  • 45. The Pros And Cons Of Felon Disenfranchisement The citizens of the United States of America have a long history of having to fight for their right to vote, and while women and people of color do have the right, another group of people is facing a difficult time being able to vote. This other group is the felons, but understandably so: a felon's ability to make critical decisions for the United country is sure to be questioned. Felon disenfranchisement serves as a barrier between individuals who are qualified to vote and those who are not. The reasons that felons are not qualified to make such important decisions for Americans is that their actions show a lack of good judgement and they show a disregard for the social contract. The ignorance toward the social contract, the types of felonies committed, and the judgement that felons have is questioned, and exactly what the impact may be in regard to our society and the future of our country is explained. There should be a few exceptions, and not all felons should suffer the same fate that those who committed a serious felony do. The social contract is a careful arrangement that persons may not be aware that they adhere to. It is simple, "each expects the others to comply, and in– tends to comply herself. No part of the agreement exists solely to ensure compliance with the remainder, so that, leaving compliance aside, omitting any of the terms of the agreement would be regarded as undesirable by at least one of the parties" (Gauthier 3). In short, the society we live in has ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 46.
  • 47. Persuasive Essay On Voting Rights Losing your civil right to vote due to a felony conviction diminishes your citizen status within the United States. The right to vote regardless of race or gender has been a significant struggle that was won in the 1960's. This accomplishment gave every citizen the equal right to vote. However, most states follow ancient times when felons are involved by stripping them of their voting rights and other civil liberties. Over time, people who make bad choices either learn from their mistakes or keep reoffending. For those who learn, we should not have the right to continue with perpetual punishment and reinforcing recidivism in a human being trying to making changes to their lives. The penial systems are not set up for rehabilitation, they are helping to reinforce that bad choices are forever unforgiven. The restorations of voting rights are essential to a United States citizen, regardless of choices citizenship will always be attached to your person, thus punishments should cease once the imposition of sentence has been completed. "Felonies are legal distinctions reserved for serious crimes versus lower–level offenses called misdemeanors. But over the years, many nonviolent acts have been classified as felonies." Over time our laws have increased to demand citizens to conform to what government believes an upstanding citizen should illustrate. However, the consequences for law breaking citizens are continually attached to their daily lives after punishment has been served. Concrete barriers have been placed before felons supporting the bad choices this community made to label them felons because these barriers push them back into the life they know rather than the life they want or should have. One of the main pushes after incarceration is employment, but it is a catch because a lot of professions do not hire convicted felons; without a job living conditions are at a minimal, essentials to everyday life can be microscopic thus stealing, robbery, or breaking and entering would seem as a quick fix for daily essentials like food. "Prison reform advocates said the biggest barrier to helping former inmates find jobs is getting employers to accept someone with a black mark on their record among their employee ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 48.
  • 49. Essay about Literature Review Coleman Literature Review 1 Literature Review Convicted Felons: Should they be allowed to vote? Writing II Professor: Melissa Piumelli Coleman Literature Review 2 Introduction: The term disenfranchisement or taking away a criminals right to vote, has been around since ancient Greece and Rome Eras. In Europe, a condition called "civil death" involves the forfeiture of property, the loss of the right to appear in court and a prohibition on entering into contracts, as well as loss of voting rights. Convicted felons of ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Some felons even after release suffered from the aftermath resulting from a previous arrest because they are not sure what rights they do hold after an imprisonment, such as Eric Willem from Roseau County, Minnesota. Eric Stephen Willem's, who was 25 at the time and had been a convicted felon since the year of 2004. Unfortunately, for Willem's who was voting for the fourth time, it was an additional felony to be voting, according to Roseau County Attorney's Office. This sent Willem back to the place where he did not want to be, jail, for an additional year. Back in 2005, this problem was at the top of the agenda for H. Clinton and J. Kerry who were trying to boost votes for the Democrats. After election defeat in 2005, Democrats mend their ways by emphasizing moral values. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Kerry introduce the Count Every Vote Act, which she claims is "critical to restoring America's faith in our voting system." Also to be added to the Act, a provision to ensure that voting ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 50.
  • 51. Felon Disenfranchisement Is The Loss Of The Right Of Vote... Felon disenfranchisement is the loss of the right to vote for people who have committed felonies. When researching deeper into felon disenfranchisement, there is an underlying racial factor that consistently comes up. Some say disenfranchisement of felons is racially oppressive and a threat to democracy, while some argue that it's functional and that race has no relevance. To start this paper I will give a brief background on felon disenfranchisement in relation to race. I will examine and analyze those who believe that "yes," disenfranchisement of felons is heavily rooted in racial persecution. I will then examine and analyze those who say "no", felon disenfranchisement is necessary and has no racial impact. After copious amounts of research, I have come to agree with the "yes" side, because their facts are more persuasive and their use of history is in depth, and as a whole this side delivered a well rounded argument. In the United States, disenfranchisement laws vary on a state level, but fall under these four main categories– never lose the right to vote, lost only while incarcerated (automatic restoration upon release), lost until completion of sentence including parole and probation, and restoration only by application and Governor's or court action. There are approximately 6.1 million disenfranchised Americans, 2.2 million of these people are African Americans, essentially one in thirteen of all African Americans nationally. In four states, the numbers increase to ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 52.
  • 53. The Use Of Felon And The Laws Impose On Felony Act One cannot discuss this topic without given the definition of felon and the laws impose on felony act. Who is a felon? A felon is someone who has been convicted of serious or violence crimes, such as murder, rape, robbery, and burglary and as a result is punishable more than one year. The constitution of U.S.A from the voting act prevents someone who has been convicted of felony to participate in an election; however this enactment is as a result of racial politics (Preuhs R.R). According to Robert this policy disproportionately affect minority population on blacks and Latino citizens, and this article is supported with enough evidence that would convince any reader. This article basically talks about how the minority population of ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... According to Preuhs he said that felon disenfranchisement has remained one of the few legal means through which a state can directly ban the electoral participation of its citizen. The article mainly focused it finding on the size of minority population, parity in incarceration rate, the degree of legislative professionalism became the author's purpose.(Preuh,.R.R.) First and foremost to support the author's ideas that felon disenfranchisement is enacted to exclude black and Latino citizens from election as the article statistically highlighted the whole nation with the percentage of blacks or Latino citizens with whites and the general population, on the national level, 36 percent of the disenfranchisement population is black, compared to 12 percent of the general population(Fellner and Mauer 1998:1) that is number of blacks is higher than the general population and the white as well. The above statistics can be supported that 13 percent of adult male African American are disenfranchised from voting but only 2 percent of the Adult population as a whole (Fellner and Manuel 1998:2) and lastly more than 25 percent of adult black men are permanently disenfranchised in Alabama, Iowa, Mississippi, New Mexico, Washington and Wyoming(Fellner and Manuel) and in order to incorporate it with the Latino citizens ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 54.
  • 55. The African American Voice In the United States more than two million people are incarcerated and seven million are under correctional supervision. There are 13 million adults that have been convicted of a felony and 47 million American have something on their record. Having a felony has attained a newfound relevance in the United States (King, 2006) . In many states begin a felon come with obstacles both informal and formal in the lives of people with a felony convicted. In the midst of the growing civil right movement, the augmented by racially disparate law enforcement and corrections policies the word "felon" is commonly linked to the African American community. Having a felony conviction limited housing, employment and educational opportunities. The barriers that of begin a felon limited the accessing to opportunities that is available to the general population (King, 2006). In the Unties Sates African Americans have a higher crime rate than any racial groups (Crutchfield, Nov2007) . The bibliography will provide an overview of the felony disenfranchisement, with an emphasis silencing the African American voice. Providing details about how disenfranchisement suppressing voter turnout for the entire African American community . Third, the author will provide a description the racial impact of felony disenfranchisement. Lastly the author will provide a conclusion and a brief summary of the insights that were gained from this policy analysis paper. King, R. S. ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 56.
  • 57. The History Of Felony Disenfranchisement Felony Disenfranchisement Disenfranchised citizens should be allowed to vote because it is the first step for the reintegration process to becoming a law abiding citizen again. Disenfranchising a citizen means to deprive them of their right to vote or deprive them of a right or privilege. Disenfranchisement has caused confusion among certain races and the United States government because certain nationalities suspected that they were being systematically targeted. Felony disenfranchisement literally defies the eighth amendment. Disenfranchised citizens may feel that they are permanently penalized for a crime they committed even though they served their sentence, parole, or probation. The history of voter discrimination led up to felony disenfranchisement. As time passed, laws changed banning discrimination against voters based on ethnicity, financial class, and gender. When America was founded in 1776, the only citizens who had a right to vote were white males. In 1787, federal voting requirements weren't set nationwide they varied from state to state ("History of Voting Rights," 2017). In 1830, numerous states removed property ownership and religion as a clause for voting. It wasn't until 1868 when the 14th amendment was passed allowing blacks to be recognized as citizens and allowing black men to vote, but not without prejudice from state officials. African– American slaves originally had no voting rights when they were brought to America. The 15th amendment passed in 1870 ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 58.
  • 59. The Issue Of Illegal Immigrants Essay DOUBLE JEOPARDY Although the constitution gives us many of the rights we enjoy every day some of us are not that fortunate. Convicted felons in many states have forever lost those rights. Because they have completed their sentence's and paid their debt to society, shouldn't they be able to have a say in what goes on in the world that they too live in? Therefore, being able to reinstate their right to vote. Felons should have the right to vote no matter what their past may be. To get a better idea of how important this issue is we will be looking at several things. The impact felony disenfranchisement has on the voting nation, the people who were for and against felony disenfranchisement, which states allow felons to vote, several facts on the history of disenfranchisement, how other countries handle felons voting compared to the United States, and the issue of illegal immigrants getting to vote but not the felons. The men and women that are released from prison every year face many challenges in reentering the world. They must find employment, a place to live, and stay out of trouble. So, at first, losing the right to vote does not sound so important. However, history shows that being an active, participating member of society helps with rehabilitation. It also can have a major impact on the community and the elections. The issue of disenfranchisement gained awareness in 2000 after the extremely close election between republican George W. Bush and democratic nominee Albert ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 60.
  • 61. Reform Of The Civil Disabilities Of Felons Reform of the Civil Disabilities of Felons The words "civil death" carry a powerful, fear–inducing quality and they should. Millions of Americans have experienced the loss of civil rights on varying levels since the founding of this country over 200 years ago. Many more in other countries throughout history have experienced the same fate. England adopted the idea of denying convicts their right to vote from ancient Greece and Rome. In addition to losing the right to vote, England also took a convict's property, denied them the right to appear in court, and also prohibited them from entering into contracts. This practice of civil death was carried over from England and implemented in the colonies when they settled in North America. ("Felony Voting Rights") Although the application of civil death has altered as the United States of America matured as a country, it remains as a widely debated topic in current events. Whether felons should regain their civil rights after they have "paid their debt to society" or not is rarely addressed by the federal government. It is, however, a topic that is addressed on a state level in many states almost every year. Some believe that a felon should lose their civil rights indefinitely. Others believe that once someone has served their sentence and paid their fines and restitution, civil rights should be fully restored. While many civil disabilities remain in place for felons, 30 states repealed or amended their laws dealing with ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 62.
  • 63. Essay On Felony Disenfranchisement 6.1 million Americans cannot vote because of a felony conviction, among the 6.1 million are large groups of the underrepresented. Representation is important when you intend to represent an entire country, so when 6.1 million voters, which of majority are minorities, are disenfranchised, there is a massive cut of representation in our system. This is exactly what is happening right now in the United States. As of 2016, an estimated 6.1 million people were disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. This figure has escalated dramatically in recent decades as the population under criminal justice supervision has increased. Even those who have completed their sentences in the ten states (Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Alabama, Florida, and Delaware) that disenfranchise people, post–sentence, make up over 50 percent of the entire disenfranchised population; totaling almost 3.1 million people. If these votes were to be restored, representation would increase, leading to an equal ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Felony disenfranchisement operates contrary to the goals of ensuring public safety and reducing reoffending by alienating from society those individuals that the criminal justice system is simultaneously attempting to reintegrate. Further, as the Committee has noted, state disenfranchisement laws are problematic not only due to the vast numbers of potential voters they affect, but also their disproportionate impact on racial minorities, particularly African Americans and Hispanics. Further, many of these laws extend punishment beyond the walls of the prison by continuing to disenfranchise individuals who are on probation, parole or have completed their full sentences. For this reason, it is particularly important that the Committee urge the United States to provide its rationale for continuing to deprive individuals with felony convictions of the right to vote after they are no longer ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 64.
  • 65. The Argument For Voting Rights Shaw provides a good point when he states: "Going through rehabilitation and reintegration, ex– felons become part of a law–abiding society with the same privileges as others in the society, proponents for voting rights argue." If they go through these things to become a part of society again, then why are they not allowed the right to vote? This must be an upsetting process for those felons that want to become a part of society again and actually care to make a difference. All that they want to do is to be granted one of the basic fundamental rights guaranteed to citizens. I mean that's the least they should get after going through the process that they do. It is only fair for them to obtain the right to vote again because at the end of the day they did what was required of them to become a part of society again and what is the use of that if they cannot even vote? Felony disenfranchisement is not something that should be in place after that felon has served the sentencing that they faced. According to Speckhdardt, "Felony disenfranchisement removes human dignity by relegating people to second–class citizen status and making them subject to a state that has no electoral accountability to those that have been convicted of felonies." I agree with this statement because that is exactly what felony disenfranchisement does. It takes away the dignity of those ex–felons who are citizens and should have an equal right to vote. They should not be made to feel any less just because ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 66.
  • 67. Equality Is The Central Point Of Discussion Equality In America Throughout the history of America, equality has always been the central point of discussion in society. Many believe that America has reached the point of equality where everyone is equal. Obviously this is not the case, but we have made great strides to reach a world where everyone is equal. However, America has made great improvements in making equality relevant in todays society. Although contemporary society has succeeded in making "equality" a reality, I claim that it has also failed in addressing this theme appropriately. America has always been associated with the theme and value of equality. America's history is thick and rich with the major theme of equality. For instance, the abolishment of slavery, which ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... USAID quotes, "If we can erase these inequities and put women on equal footing with men– we know we can unlock human potential on a transformational scale". The government agency's push towards equality for women will not just benefit women, but many other people. For instance, USAID quotes, "just by empowering women farmers with the same access to land, new technologies and capital as men, we can increase crop yields by as much as 30 percent and feed an additional 150 million people". This agency is a work in progress, but there mindset is on equality for all, which is magnificent. Contemporary society has been able to keep the value of equality relevant throughout America. The strides made by society in order to reach equality for all genders is tremendous, yet society is still in the dark over equality in other areas. While society in America has been able to keep the value of equal germane, it has also failed in making this value a reality. Writer Joseph E. Stiglitz, author of the"Great Divide", quotes, "the gap between aspiration and reality could hardly be wider". Stiglitz is pessimistic about the value of equality in America and how it has been addressed. Stiglitz quotes, "Today, the United States has less equality of opportunity than almost any other advanced industrial country, study after study has exposed the myth that America is the land of opportunity". Now, Stiglitz is making a huge statement by saying that ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 68.
  • 69. Should Felons Have The Right? Should felons have the right to vote? Felons are people who have been convicted of a felony. Felony is a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death. In Maine and Vermont, felons never lose their right to vote, even while they are incarcerated. Vermont's 1793 Constitution stipulates that residents can lose their right to vote only if convicted of voter fraud. In Florida, Lowa and Virginia, felons and ex–felons permanently lose their right to vote. Eleven states restrict voting even after a person has completed their prison sentence and finished probation or parole. Twenty states require completion of parole and probation before voting is allowed, and fourteen states allow felons to vote after they leave prison. In 1789, Kentucky became the first U.S. state to ban convicted criminals from voting. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that felon disenfranchisement is a violation of the Voting Rights Act in her May 4, 2006 dissenting opinion in Hayden v. Pataki. Ex–felons should be able to vote because they served their punishment and now they are out so they probably did not do anything serious like first–degree felony: murder, rape, kidnapping, arson, fraud. Second–degree felony: aggravated assault, felony assault, arson, manslaughter, possession of a controlled substance, child molestation. The Voting Rights Act, signed into law by President Lyndon ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 70.
  • 71. Essay On Felon Disenfranchisement The land of the free, or so we claim. The land of opportunities and the land where dreams come true. The land that grants the freedom of bearing arms and the land where everyone who feeds on it has the freedom of speech, other than felons of course. Felons are perceived as the embarrassment of our nation. People believe that those who commit crimes shall pay for their actions but the question is what happens after they've served their time and taken responsibility for what they have done? Our nation has built a system in which those who have committed crimes will forever be punished. Once a person is labeled a felon, he or she will face a lifetime of discrimination. Life will seem more free behind bars than the new world they are put in. Those ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... Felon disenfranchisement can affect society as a whole by further marginalizing and alienating formerly incarcerated individuals, thus forming a community of ex–felons excluded from civil society. Losing one's voting rights extends feelings of not being wanted and a feeling of powerlessness. Those who are stripped of their basic voting rights will receive the message that what they have to say, mainly about who they want to represent them, does not matter. If a group of people don't believe they are seen as a part of society, they are less likely to engage and contribute to their community. By categorizing all ex–offenders together and decreeing disenfranchisement, communities will divide in a manner of whose voice matters and whose does not. Compared to other world leading countries, the united states has arguably the most politically divided communities but the problem lies on whether people can express their opinions or not, in this case through voting. Alexander writes "No other country in the world disenfranchises people who are released from prison in a manner even remotely resembling the United States" (158). This mass disenfranchisement creates a country where its citizens have no say in who represents them and their ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 72.
  • 73. Should Felons Be Disenfranchised? In 2016, about 2.5% of the adult US population, or 6.1 million potential voters, were deprived of the right to vote because of a felony conviction. (Kozlowska) A felony is defined as "a crime, typically one involving violence, regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death," including murder, the sale or manufacture of drugs, treason, and even tax evasion. (Google) Disenfranchisement is the state of being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote. The question of whether or not ex–felons should be disenfranchised is still discussed today; some believe that ex–felons can repay their debt to society by not voting, and some, vice versa. Unfortunately, ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... In addition, criminal disenfranchisement laws were created. Even though whites claimed them to be race–neutral, they were effectively racist in arresting and disenfranchising blacks over whites. The measures evolved into laws, and over a few years, they started to disenfranchise people for modern– day felonies as well as minor crimes, solely to keep blacks from voting and taking part in political activities. In 1901, Delegate Carter Glass of Virginia described felon disenfranchisement as a plan to "eliminate the darkey as a political factor in [the] state in less than five years." (Bouie) Many years later, in the 1960's, the Civil Rights Act resulted in courts overturning and outlawing the South's restrictive voting rights, and voting percentages of blacks doubled. However, most felony disenfranchisement laws stayed. But issues with felony disenfranchisement are still relevant today. There are still more African Americans disenfranchised in America than any other race because of the lingering aspects of disenfranchisement history and the racism that still exists in society today. One in thirteen African Americans of voting age are disenfranchised, resulting in a rate more than four times greater than that of non–African Americans; over 7.4 percent of the adult African American population is disenfranchised compared to 1.8 ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 74.
  • 75. Essay about Felon Disenfranchisement The root of Felon Disenfranchisement can be traced back to Greek and Roman laws. Where any person convicted of an infamous crime would lose his or her right to participate in polis. In Rome they would lose their right to participate in suffrage and to serve in the Roman legions. With the founding of the United States of America, the US Constitution gave the right to establish voting laws to the states. From 1776 – 1821 eleven states included felony disenfranchisement in their laws (Voter Registration Protection Act). By 1868 when the fourteenth Amendment was enacted eighteen states had adopted disenfranchisement laws. After the Civil War felony Disenfranchisement laws were used along with poll taxes and literary test to exclude African ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... However, that leaves a whole 33percent of ex felons that do not commit another crime and want to be productive members of society an ''earn'' there voting rights back. Granted, being that statistics show a greater number of reoffending felons this is good cause to why society and the communities these ex felons reside are against felons voting. On the contrary State data shows that most prison admissions are for probation or parole violations. Maybe that's because punishment is so light: 79 percent of state inmates are released before reaching their maximum sentences. In other words, maybe they aren't afraid of being reincarcerated because they know they'll never serve their full terms and continue to commit certain crimes as a cry for help. Admittedly, As Roger Clegg, president of the conservative advocacy group Center for Equal Opportunity, neatly puts it, "If you aren't willing to follow the law, you can't claim the right to make the law for everyone else" (Time .com). This guy is totally credible and makes a lot of sense and a lot of people will agree with this. But America allows ex–convicts to marry, reproduce, buy beer, own property and drive. They don't lose their freedom of ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...
  • 76.
  • 77. Felony Disenfranchisement Should Felons be Allowed to Vote? 1 In this essay, I will be in support of felons having their voting rights restored after serving their prison sentences and completing all terms and conditions of probation or parole successfully. My reasons for supporting the restoration of felons' voting rights are because voting is a "right" under the Constitution of the United States. After a person serves their prison sentence; some ex–felons have the ability to be and remain rehabilitated and live productive lives. Also, the laws are changing making it easier to be charged as a felon. Most of the people that are against felons voting claim that they make bad judgments because they do not abide ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ... In those twenty states people who are in prison, on parole, and on probation cannot Should Felons be Allowed to Vote? 3 vote. Four states, California, Colorado, Connecticut, and New York, do not allow prisoners and parolees to vote, but people with any criminal past, even those on probation, can vote. Thirteen states, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Utah, only disenfranchise felons while they are in prison. Everyone else, including felons, parolees, and those on probation are allowed to vote. In two states, New Hampshire and Maine, everyone has a right to vote, including prisoners. There are eleven states, Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wyoming, which make it exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for some felons to regain their right to vote. Most of these states do not allow criminals who committed serious felonies such as rape, murder, and kidnapping to vote without an action by the Board of Parole or the governor of the ... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...