felons would no longer have to wait two years after serving their sentences to exercise their right to vote under a bill passed in the nebraska legislature on monday. nebraska governor pete ricketts has not said if he will allow legislative bill 75 to become law or not.
the priority bill of state senator justin wayne of omaha would need 30 votes to override a veto. the bill received 27 'yes' votes on monday. wayne said, "i hope the governor signs it and we stop disenfranchising who need to integrate back into the community."
the current law requiring a two-year waiting period was adopted in 2005 after the legislature overrode the veto of (then) governor dave heineman. previously, a felon had to receive a state pardon before his right to vote was restored.
38 other states allow felons to vote after they complete their sentences. iowa is one of three states who permanently ban voting rights of felons. enslaved africans were legally denied voting rights, and well into the 19th century these racist laws were used to maintain white power and privilege.
i am
- mark j. tuggle
- harlem, usa
- same-gender-loving contemporary descendant of enslaved africans. community activist, feminist, health educator, independent filmmaker, mentor, playwright, poet & spiritual being. featured at, in & on africana.com, afrikan poetry theatre, angel herald, bejata dot com, bet tonight with tavis smiley, blacklight online, black noir, brooklyn moon cafe, gmhc's barbershop, klmo-fm, lgbt community services center, longmoor productions, nuyorican poets cafe, our corner, poz, pulse, rolling out new york, rush arts gallery, saint veronica's church, schomburg center for research in black culture, sexplorations, the citizen, the new york times, the soundz bar, the trenton times, the village voice, upn news, uzuri, venus, vibe, wbai-fm, wnyc-fm & wqht-fm. volunteered with adodi, bailey house, inc., black men's xchange-new york, colorofchange.org, drug policy alliance, east harlem tutorial program, imagenation film & music festival, presente.org, save darfur coalition, the enough project, the osborne association, the sledge group & your black world. worked on films with maurice jamal & heather murphy. writing student of phil bertelsen & ed bullins. mjt975@msn.com.
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