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Felony disenfranchisement
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Felony Disenfranchisement is the group of policies whereby felons lose their voting rights. Felons' voting rights are restricted in 48 states, all except Maine and Vermont. In some cases, felons can vote once they finished their sentences and parole and/or probation, and in other cases, they can never vote again.
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[edit] Historical Relevance
In ancient Greek and Roman traditions, offenders for certain "infamous" crimes suffered civil death as well as the punishment for their crimes. This included the loss of rights, the seizure of land, or even injury or death. This concept spread to medieval Europe, and soon to the Americas thanks to Imperialism. It spread to the colonies with the British settlers, and come Independance, many civil disabilities stuck, though felons were not the only ones excluded from the vote, since women, African Americans, and others were not allowed to vote either.
With the end of the Civil War and passing of the Fifteenth Amendment, that gave African American's the right to vote, opposition to black suffrage created numerous race-neautral barriers to voting, which would target the African American community. These included literacy tests, poll taxes, and most specifically, criminal disenfranchisement.
[edit] The Arguements
[edit] Pro-felony disenfranchisement
Those who agree with felony disenfranchisement believe that felons have commited crimes that have broken the social contract, and by doing such, have given up their rights to participate in civil society. Others argue that by commiting crimes, these felons have showed poor judgement, and should not be allowed to make important decisions, such as voting.
[edit] Anti-felony disenfranchisement
Opponents to felony disenfranchisement use evidence, such as the fact that felons who participate in civil society are less likely to return to crime, to prove their point. Also, many opponents believe the deprivation of civil rights is against our democratic values. Another point that many opponents draw attention to, is that felony disenfranchisment is de-facto racism, since minorities are statistically affected more by it.