In the states of Florida and Alabama, one in three black men is permanently disenfranchised and in seven other states that ratio is near 25 percent. In states that permanently bar the vote to convicted felons, the study noted, as many as 40 percent of black men may permanently be disenfranchised. The 1998 study noted that no other democracy besides the United States disenfranchised former in- mates for life.
Many countries even allow prisoners to vote.
We may celebrate American democracy in our political rhetoric but our policies are stuck in a racist rut. Salim Muwakkil is a senior editor of In These Times magazine.