Imprisoned by the Census
Anyone imprisoned in the United States as of April 1 will remain behind bars for the next decade — at least as far as the U.S. Census is concerned.
Even if their sentence ends today, the census still counts them as residents of the town or city where they were imprisoned on April 1 — not as residents of the communities where they lived before going to prison and to which they are most likely to return.
This practice turns incarcerated people, who in most cases cannot vote, into phantom voters. It also falsely inflates the political power of districts with prisons while undercutting districts with larger voting populations: what advocates call "prison-based gerrymandering." With 2.3 million people incarcerated in the United States, this practice often dramatically affects the balance of political power in a given state.
Some states, including New York, are considering legislation that would count incarcerated people as residents of their home communities for redistricting purposes.
Perhaps by 2020, the federal government will affirm its commitment to one person, one vote, and finally recognize that a prison cell is not a residence. Until then, state legislatures must do what they can to correct the count.
Apr 2nd, 2010 at 10:10pm
very interesting perspective. of course it would be much better if the incarceration rate wasn't as high so it wouldn't be as much of an issue...
Apr 3rd, 2010 at 12:07pm
Since the residivism rates are so high we probably should leave it as is.
Apr 4th, 2010 at 8:56pm
Hey guy while your on the topic of the census my step dad is Mexican & on the form it says Hispanic is not a race & when my mom called them & asked what to put down they said you could put down anything he wanted.
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