February 6, 2007 : ACLU-TN to Expand Efforts to Restore Voting Rights to Former Felons

For Immediate Release
Tuesday February 6, 2007

For More Information, Contact: Hedy Weinberg,
615-320-7142

Nashville - The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee (ACLU-TN) today announced phase two of its "Tennessee Right to Vote" Campaign which focuses on restoring voting rights for former felons who have completed their sentences. Supported by a recently awarded one year grant from the Tides Foundation, ACLU-TN will expand its work to increase public support for voter enfranchisement of former felons.  

Explaining ACLU-TN's   commitment to voting rights, ACLU-TN Executive Director Hedy Weinberg said, "Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy. A  vote is a voice, and ACLU-TN is committed to ensuring that every citizen has the right to use their voice." 

ACLU-TN's  "Right to Vote" Campaign will organize and sponsor  a statewide conference, scheduled for May 3, 2007 to examine felony disenfranchisement and the broader issues of punishment and the criminal justice system, including the social and economic effects on the community, viable alternatives to incarceration, and strategies for reintegration of former felons into the community.

In addition,  the Tennessee "Right to Vote" Campaign will:  create a speakers’ bureau, composed primarily of former felons, to encourage more former felons to register to vote; engage a wider group of people in the effort to amend the current laws which restrict full enfranchisement;  investigate voter registration practices to highlight and address procedures preventing former felons from registering to vote; and increase the number of attorneys and activists willing to assist former felons who face obstacles when attempting to register to vote.

According to Weinberg, "Until last year, Tennessee's felony voting rights restoration law, a patchwork quilt of rules, regulations, and  procedures, was the most confusing and complicated in the country.” After two years of legislative advocacy, the Tennessee Legislature passed a law (Public Chapter 860) that streamlines the process and creates a uniform system for restoring voting rights of persons with past felony convictions. In addition, former felons no longer have to go to court to restore their voting rights. 

After passage of the new law, ACLU-TN spearheaded a statewide public awareness campaign to educate the public about the new law. During phase one of the Campaign, ACLU-TN organized eight town hall meetings across the state, educating communities about the new law and its broader implications and providing voter registration opportunities.   

According to ACLU-TN Right to Vote Project Coordinator Michele Flynn, “Phase two of the Campaign will build on the campaign's earlier successes  and focus on additional reforms in order to make the law more user-friendly and to ensure that all former felons can regain their voting rights.”

Weinberg explained, "The new law, though an important first step has serious constitutional deficiencies that ACLU-TN hopes to remedy.” The new law requires that former felons be current on all court-ordered child support payments and that they have completed their court-ordered restitution.

According to Weinberg, "These provisions act much like a poll tax, creating barriers to voting based on one's  financial status. These provisions unfairly penalize poor mothers and fathers who may never have enough money to buy back their franchise. ACLU -TN is now in the process of identifying individuals adversely affected by these blatantly unfair and unconstitutional provisions in order to file a lawsuit.”

The "Tennessee Right to Vote (RTV)" Campaign is a coalition of civil rights and civil liberties organizations working to restore voting rights for people with felony convictions. The Campaign, spearheaded by ACLU-TN, includes the Catholic Public Policy Commission, local chapters of NAACP, Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor Council, Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, The Restoration Project and the Tennessee Bar Association.  

For more information about ACLU-TN’s "Right to Vote" Campaign and the May 3rd state-wide conference, please contact ACLU-TN Right to Vote Project Coordinator Michele Flynn at 615-320-7142.