Felony disenfranchisement

law should be the only people who are granted these privileges; like the right to vote, hold public office, and bear arms. According to the text, “Agenda for Demolition’: The Fallacy and the Danger of the ‘Subversive Voting’ Argument for Felony Disenfranchisement” Convicts and former inmates make vote to “weaken the criminal law” This isn’t in APA format for citations. You can ask Mrs. Stockard how to do in text citations Argument (What does it have to do with your thesis) Those whothat…

In 1981, the infamous Lee Atwater detailed how Nixon gained political power by using deracialized language to maintain racialized stereotypes. Largely, this tactic was employed by attributing poverty to black people and then demonizing poverty or social programs that would serve to benefit those experiencing poverty. This serves as the new form of racism. Because actually passing laws to explicitly negatively affect black people would be a violation of the Equal Protection Clause, the…

Up until the 1970s, policies regarding corrections were based on the principle of rehabilitation so that when prisoners were released they could successfully reintegrate into society. To increase the possibility for successful reintegration, prisoners were encouraged to amend their occupational skills and to receive treatment for any psychological issues they faced ranging from addiction and substance abuse to aggression. Since the 1970s, policy makers have shifted to a crime control model that…

Felon Laws and Recidivism When an offender is convicted of a felony he or she must be punished. This retribution not only included serving prison time, but fines and revocations. This subject is significant because we live in a culture where prisons are congested and crime is going up. The laws should be designed to support techniques in place that deter returning to prison and contradict them. Convicted felons lose many of the civil rights that are given to citizens without a record. Annulling…

Others believe that without the right to vote, “… may actually contribute to recidivism by keeping ex-offenders and their families disengaged from the civic mainstream.” (Feser). This seems like a good point but the results of the study could have been misinterpreted. Voting doesn’t make someone responsible, although, the responsible person will be likelier to vote. This means, that, “a former inmate who already has what it takes to clean up his act, is not likely to relapse into a life of crime…

Throughout American history, few other identity groups have been regulated to second class citizenship more than African Americans. Often, the Hegemonic society of “White America” has oppressed the African American community through overt public policies such as Jim Crow and Segregation. One fairly recent public policy that has inflicted further damage to the black community is the disastrous war on drugs. A historical analysis of the war on drugs shows that it has consistently targeted the…

A Caged Country: Mass Incarceration in America Mass incarceration is an indication of the downfall of America because too many people are carelessly thrown into jails and prisons, it prohibits progress amongst “minority” communities, and hinders the country’s economy by increasing unnecessary debt. Although some are opposed to limiting mass incarceration because they believe it may hinder public safety, it is not the most effective route to reaching public safety. Mass incarceration has only…

America is one of the greatest countries in the world, however, America is riddled with problems. One of the most controversy problems in America is the prison industrial complex. The prison industrial complex is a term used to describe the overlapping interests of government and industry that use surveillance, policing, and imprisonment as solutions to economic, social and political problems. The prison industrial complex allows private prisons to profit off inmates, thereby giving the…

“Felony is the new N-word. They don’t have to call you nigger anymore”(Kilgore). The N-word was a label given to African-Americans to serve as a verbal means of oppression. In similar ways, the word felon is now being used as a means of keeping African Americans out of work, reinforcing negative stereotypes, and perpetuating the white-black class divide. Michelle Alexander’s book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, introduced the preceding quote when arguing that…

The victory of the northern states in the American Civil War brought with it one of the biggest changes in United States history: the freeing of the slaves. The economic system was turned on its head and the first major breakthrough for the African Americans was achieved. For generations, black people had been owned by white men, and that was no longer the case. Black people were officially their own people, which was huge progress in the fight for their equality. The end of the fight, though,…