Politics of Prison

One of the reasons for the American Revolution was taxation without legislative representation, the colonies paid taxes, yet had no representation in Parliament. Today there are millions of Americans who pay their taxes (state and federal), yet are so politically disenfranchised that they are used to shore up rural legislative districts far from their homes at the cost of their own communities. Felon disenfranchisement ensures that people who commit certain crimes are essentially stripped of their citizenship--most definitions of citizenship include some level of political participation, e.g. voting. What's worse, such disenfranchisement is an artifact from times in American history that we were all taught about in middle school and were supposed to learn lessons from. Once upon a time in America, a person could get out of prison, go vote and buy a gun all in the same day. In Tammany's New York they could vote five or six times that day, but that's a story for another blog. The first laws stripping felons of their rights came during [Reconstruction]. White southerners were afraid of the black majorities that existed because of enslavement and emancipation. Their fears were twofold: first, blacks would take control of state governments (since they were the majority); second, blacks would take revenge for enslavement as illustrated in [Birth of a Nation]. To prevent both outcomes, whites made voting all but impossible. One of the most effective ways used "[vagrancy laws]". These were petty crimes, like vagrancy--considered stereotypical of blacks--and elevated them to felonies. This occurred at the same time laws made felonies a disqualifier for people, black people, for voting. Such [Jim Crow] era laws stripped the rights from any person of color and added a veneer of legitimacy to discrimination. In this way, southern states ripped political power away from hundreds of thousands of minorities. Echoes of such Jim Crow ideals can be heard today when politicians talk about the "quality" of a vote, or "qualified" voters. The overt implication being someone who is educated on issues, yet also implying that there are certain people whose votes should count for less, like 3/5 of other peoples' vote. The fact is that stripping inmates of their right to vote has as much to do will election security as knowing the number of jelly beans in a jar. The [Three-Fifths clause] was mentioned not just to make a point, but because it is alive and well, and on steroids. Today its Five-Fifths. When the framers nailed together the Constitution, the Three-Fifths clause was included to exploit enslaved individuals for both political representation in the U.S. House of Representatives and to guarantee slavery's existence through that same body. Today, individuals in prisons are relocated to rural areas to boost population for political power. For example, in Washington State, Airway Heights Correction Center was built outside of Spokane Washington in the late 1990s; at the same time the strategic bomber group at Fairchild Air Force Base (a mile and a half from where the prison stands) was relocated. The area was set to lose enough families that it jeopardized a House seat, that is until the prison was built and populated. The lost voters were replaced with non-voting felons, mostly from urban areas like Seattle and Tacoma. This shored up rural Washington's political power at the expense of another community's representation. This is because the U.S. Census Bureau counts inmates where they are incarcerated, not where they were arrested, or where their families live. One final fact to note is that in spite of all of the above, inmates still pay taxes. While earnings are often too low for most to pay income taxes, sales tax is taken for commissary. This alone should guarantee a vote and representation at the state level. Yet those in prison are made to pay taxes and denied political enfranchisement. The reality is that there is no reason any adult citizen of the U.S. should not be allowed to vote. Already states have started to allow felons to vote as soon as released from prison. Even those in prison. This would be a perfect application for absentee voting. Additionally, people in prison should be allowed to choose the communities in which they are counted. Because inmates would likely register to vote where their families reside, there is little chance of upsetting elections in communities around prisons, or "making crimes legal." This would be a small, but important step towards real prison reform.