<p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDU1NDE3Ni9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxOTcxNTMxMX0.h6_9FGx27vz7iT-mITT9D9sjDg3zXoff9_TvWwUfU9k/img.png?width=980" id="bac52" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b547371b7210b1917b1f92d110e80bd1" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Lack of knowledge and misconceptions about voting rights for people with felonies and misdeemeeanors" data-width="1516" data-height="1040">
</p><p>These misconceptions disproportionately affect young Black, Latino and Native American communities. These populations are <a href="https://www.sentencingproject.org/the-facts/#detail?state1Option=U.S.%20Total&state2Option=0" target="_blank">far more likely to be arrested, placed in juvenile detention facilities or incarcerated</a> than those from other backgrounds, making questions about disenfranchisement and voting rights more pressing. Scholars estimate that one in three Americans <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0011128713514801" target="_blank">will be arrested by the age of 23</a>. And, like most dynamics connected to the criminal justice system in America, Black people are more affected by felony arrests. A 2019 study from The Sentencing Project found that <a href="https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/felony-disenfranchisement-a-primer/" target="_blank">one in 13 Black men in America is denied access to the ballot</a>.<br></p><p><p style="text-align: center;" id="sufn"><a style="font-weight: bold;margin:40px auto;font-size:2rem" href="https://thefulcrum.us/st/newsletters">Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter </a></p></p><p>Ultimately, these findings underscore that misconceptions about election laws can make young people believe they cannot vote even when they are indeed eligible. Laws need to be clear and to be communicated properly. We must make sure we're providing all Americans — but especially young people who are new to elections — complete and accurate information about participating in democracy.</p><p>You can read our <a href="https://circle.tufts.edu/latest-research/opaque-landscape-felony-disenfranchisement-laws-poses-challenge-young-voters" target="_blank">full analysis of young people and felony disenfranchisement laws here</a>.</p><p><em>Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg is the director of the <a data-linked-post="2639006380" href="https://thefulcrum.us/center-for-information-and-research-on-civic-learning-andengagement" target="_blank">Center for Information and Research and Civic Learning and Engagement</a>, part of the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University. Alberto Medina is a communications specialist at Tisch College. <em>Read more from The Fulcrum's </em><em><a href="https://thefulcrum.us/election-dissection" target="_self">Election Dissection</a>.</em><em></em></em></p><p><div class="x12"><div class="htlad-Desktop_Content_Banner"></div></div></p>From Your Site Articles
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