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@Taniel | |||||
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A NY lawmaker said that allowing voting from prison is "insulting" to law enforcement.
So I reached out to prosecutors & DOCs in Maine & Vermont, which enable prison voting, to ask about that.
And received some powerful replies. Check it out! And thread. theappeal.org/politicalrepor…
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Taniel
@Taniel
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22. stu |
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Those who replied defended prison voting, or else shrugged it off as a non-issue.
The prosecutor of VT's biggest county said: "That quote is appalling. .... It’s a good reflection of how inhumane our system has become."
If nothing else, read her quote: theappeal.org/politicalrepor… pic.twitter.com/ppmndwNuPl
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Taniel
@Taniel
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22. stu |
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But this is key: DAs or DOCs in ME & VT are interesting not bc they have special say. On the contrary.
What they signal is the gap between a system like NY, that sets them up as gatekeepers of voting rights, & one like VT's, where public officials don't get to police who votes.
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Taniel
@Taniel
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22. stu |
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Each time DAs decide whether to charge someone with a felony, or whether to offer someone a deal that avoids prison, or how long a sentence to seek, they shift the voting public.
And we know such decisions systematically skew against people of color. theappeal.org/politicalrepor… pic.twitter.com/M55WSiUCHW
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Taniel
@Taniel
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22. stu |
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That power validates those who see people in prison as vanquished adversaries to be cut off from the world.
But multiple officials in ME & VT cast voting as a link between incarcerated people & the world beyond the prison. A way to fight civil death.
theappeal.org/politicalrepor… pic.twitter.com/jFYkxIFomT
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Jill Steinberg
@JillSteinberg3
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23. stu |
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Thanks as always @Taniel but in the USA how is "insulting" law enforcement a legitimate reason for disenfranchising a citizen? They should have to do better than that when taking a decision to strip a citizen of their most important duty. Snowflakes
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Taniel
@Taniel
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23. stu |
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That's very much thrust of article! Not that whether they are insulted matters: but that, if they would be in a place like NY, that speaks to the way crim legal system is set up.
Depriving people of this right invites public officials to think they can ignore other rights, too.
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Izengabe
@Izengabe_
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24. stu |
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Loss of voting rights is part of the punishment for committing a crime. When you are convicted of committing a crime against society you should lose the ability to pick our leaders and make the rules. Criminals shouldn't vote until they've served their time & repaid their debt.
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Taniel
@Taniel
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24. stu |
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Disenfranchisement "is" not part of punishment of a crime, period. That's incorrect. It is not at all in some states; in all others it's part of the punishment of some crimes, and sometimes not even of all felonies. That alone shows there is no fatality or intrinsic link here.
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J Gudy
@j_gudy
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22. stu |
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Why should we care even if it were insulting to LEO's?
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Taniel
@Taniel
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22. stu |
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I am not suggesting that matters. I'm suggesting that reveals something about how systems foster expectations about the importance of voting rights to center on humanity & political agency of all. twitter.com/Taniel/status/…
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