Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 1-14-22

Editorial/Column
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Why Are So Many Black American Men In Prison And Cannot Vote?
hy are so many
Black American men in our state and federal pris- ons? This question brings great concern for Returning Citizens and their family
members.
According to the Marshall
Project, "taxpayers invest over $80 billion to incarcer- ate millions of prisoners. Family members of inmates spend an additional $2 to $8 billion in telephone calls, and prison visits to make prison life bearable for their loved ones.
Many women work two and three jobs to assist their loved ones and pay their household bills." Based on the data, it appears that prison is a booming business used to support the judicial and penal systems and em- ploy residents of rural com- munities.
One private prison threat- ened to sue the state of Cali- fornia due to the dwindling number of inmates in their private prisons. It bears to reason that “someone” must go to prison to support the prison complex financially.
On November 20, 1979, there were only 13 prisons in the state of Florida. I recall the date well, as it’s the day I was released from prison. Today, there are 67 prisons in Florida, mostly located in rural communities.
Additionally, 30,870 or 33.2% White males are in
prison, while 39,874 or 45.4% Black Americans are in our Florida prisons, accord- ing to the Florida Depart- ment of Corrections 2019-2020 Annual Report. Black Americans comprise a majority of the prison popu- lation.
Why are so many Black Americans imprisoned, and how does it impact the democracy process at large?
Florida leads the nation in people serving a life sen- tence under the “two strikes” law formally called the Prison Release Reoffender law. In addition, “almost all state prosecutors seek to enhance the sentence of all eligible de- fendants.” according to the Marshall Project.
An example of such fla- grant action is evident in the Tampa Bay area. Hillsbor- ough County had 3,405 eligi- ble cases and chose to enhance 1,828 or 54% of their cases. Pasco and Pinel- las County had 5,486 eligible cases and enhanced all 5,486 cases. This means a defen- dant often received more time.
It’s an odd scenario con- sidering the accused are sup- posed to be advised of the direct consequences of a guilty plea by the judge or his attorney as mandated by Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure 3.171 and 3.172 (j).80% to 90% of the Public Defenders cases result in a
plea bargain. One wonders how many current incarcer- ated citizens and Returning Citizens understood the im- pact of taking a plea bargain.
Black American men make up roughly 7% of the Florida population, yet over 45% are incarcerated and stripped of their voting rights. Votes that could shift policies if Black, Brown, and poor individuals were heard at the ballot box.
In an effort to reduce the well-known “school to prison pipeline” and create a uni- form plea bargain system that is equitable for all resi- dents, returning citizens and their families must speak up and use their voices for change.
How Can You Make A Difference?
Complete the Survey on page 10-A.
COACH Foundation, Inc. is requesting a copy of the Plea Agreement of currently incarcerated people and Re- turning Citizens who were not advised they would be unable to vote or complete their sentence until all fines, fees, and court costs were paid in full. We are working to promote a more uniform plea bargain system.
Comments and questions are welcome and can be emailed to wdixon2558@- aol.com or mailed to COACH Foundation, Inc. PO Box 310747 Tampa, FL 33680.
Please note: the intent of this article is not to give legal advice. Please seek the help of an effective post-convic- tion attorney if you have a legal question or the judge did not inform you that you cannot vote or complete your sentence until you’ve paid all your fines, fees, and court cost.
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C. Blythe Andrews 1901-1977 (1945)
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Never Again! Questions For All Candidates
aving learned that there are already 163 Republi-
can Trump election lie supporters running for state and federal elected offices, we could not stop rais- ing the alarm to America’s silent majority voters – you!
We cannot stop reminding you that Trump support- ers are seeking at least 435 U. S. House of Representa- tive and 34 Senate Congressional seats on November 8, 2022. Of those seats, 28 of them are in Florida. We urge you to vote early and to make sure all your family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors vote in their local, state, and Congressional elections.
There is no secret that many January 6, 2021, attack- ers on the U. S. Capitol and Trump supporters will be seeking local, state, and federal elected offices. There- fore, we cannot afford to not vote in 2022 and 2024, es- pecially since only two Republicans attended the January 6th Memorial, an indication that the “it didn’t happen” mentality is rampant among Republican lead- ers.
Moreover, we have developed a list of questions that we ask you to ask all candidates running for office in the future – a list we will ask every candidate seeking offices in our city, county, legislature and Congress.
The questions are as follows:
1. Did you attend the January 6, 2022 Memorial Service?
2. Do you trust the ethics of the Supervisors of Elec- tions for your district?
3. Do you believe the Supervisors of Elections in your district have established policies that prevent vot- ers from voting multiple times.
4. Do you believe there was widespread fraud in your district in the November 2020 election?
5. Do you support the assault on the Capitol that took place on January 6, 2021?
6. Do you support Donald Trump’s behavior of op- posing the Electoral College certification votes prior to and on January 6, 2021, regarding the 2020 election re- sults?
7. Do you support and defend the United States Con-
stitution as currently written?
8. Do you support the passage of election laws that make it more difficult for
American citizens to vote?
9. Will you agree to support the process for certifying the votes of the Electoral
College in 2024?
10. Did you support the illegal acts of Donald Trump to attempt to change the elec-
tion results of the states of Georgia, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, and Wiscon- sin?
11. Do you believe Donald Trump received more votes than Joe Biden?
12. Do you believe there was an attack on the U. S. Capitol on January 6, 2021?
You can add your own questions as well.
We can no longer bury our heads in the sand and pretend that nothing dangerous happened January 6, 2021. We must act to make sure history never AGAIN repeats itself. Vote? Ask Questions! Act! NEVER AGAIN!
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PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY FRIDAY, JANUARY 14, 2022