Something to rue as well as hail
say WHAT...? is this one of those good news/bad news stories or is it merely an unintentional embarrassment...? check the teaser for this story in today's nyt email headlines...
"hailed...?" what exactly is it that should be "hailed...?" that more black americans get to vote or that we throw black americans in the slammer in vastly higher numbers than the rest of the population...? at least the nyt has the good sense to acknowledge the issue, although not the percentage of the 5.3M prison population that's black...
here's what they SHOULD have bothered to mention...
the irony of the story is that our democracy (what's left of it, that is) is suffering because so many people are denied the vote... absolutely shameful...! Submit To Propeller
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States Are Growing More Lenient in Allowing Felons to Vote
By ERIK ECKHOLM
The trend toward loosened voting restrictions for felons is
hailed by some rights advocates as a step toward democratic
principles, especially for black Americans.
"hailed...?" what exactly is it that should be "hailed...?" that more black americans get to vote or that we throw black americans in the slammer in vastly higher numbers than the rest of the population...? at least the nyt has the good sense to acknowledge the issue, although not the percentage of the 5.3M prison population that's black...
Because of their high incarceration rate, blacks are most affected by the voting bans that vary widely among the states, with many barring current inmates and parolees from voting until they have fulfilled their sentences, and some barring felons for life.
In recent years, Iowa, Nebraska and New Mexico have repealed their lifetime bans on voting by people who have been convicted of felonies, and several other states made it easier for freed prisoners or those on probation to vote, according to the report, issued yesterday by the Sentencing Project, a liberal advocacy group in Washington.
The recent changes have restored voting rights to more than 600,000 individuals, the report said. But because the country’s prison population has continued to rise, a record number of Americans, 5.3 million, are still denied the vote because of criminal records, it concluded.
here's what they SHOULD have bothered to mention...
According to new data from the U.S. Department of Justice, one in 136 Americans is behind bars today, including an astounding 12 percent of all black men between the ages of 25 and 29. The United States represents 4.6 percent of the world's population, but houses nearly 23 percent of humanity's prison population.
the irony of the story is that our democracy (what's left of it, that is) is suffering because so many people are denied the vote... absolutely shameful...! Submit To Propeller
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posted by profmarcus at
10/12/2006
