Last week, a crowd gathered outside of the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility near downtown. They were there to advocate for causes that would make a difference to people who are or were incarcerated. One of the causes is a person's right to vote after they've been imprisoned for a felony conviction.
"You have roughly about 53,000 people that’s on probation out here taking care of their family and paying their taxes. You got about 13,000 people that’s on parole doing the same thing, being productive members of society," Linda Bell said at the rally. "However, they can’t vote."
Jason Wilson is the field director at WISDOM. He explains that the idea for the campaign came from conversations with other staff members about not being able to vote.
"So many of us here at WISDOM are directly impacted by incarceration. Some of us are still on supervision. Some of us have been through the Wisconsin penal system. As a whole, we just want people to have their citizenship restored," Wilson says. "That's what really gave birth to the campaign. The importance of your voice being heard it's almost unexplainable."
Wilson, who was previously incarcerated, is currently serving a 10 year community supervision sentence. Since he is still completing his sentence, he cannot vote.
"I've successfully transitioned back into the community. I've been living crime-free. I'm in a prominent position in my job, and I'm a taxpaying citizen, but yet my voice can't be heard," Wilson says. "Once you complete your prison sentence, you should be able to walk out, free and clear, and have your citizenship restored. The basics of citizenship is the ability to be able to vote, to choose your elected officials, the people that you want to position to help you with your your needs as a community."
Wisconsin law states that people with felony convictions can vote after they have finished their sentence, or they are “off paper.” This means they have to be done with probation, parole or extended supervision. However, in 2016, the average length of parole in Wisconsin was 38 months, which is over 3 years.
In June 2020, there were more than 64,000 people in Wisconsin who couldn’t vote because they were on probation or on parole.
David Murrell is WISDOM’s prison outreach director. He helped organize the rally to show solidarity for people who are incarcerated. Murrell also cannot vote. He was sentenced to serve 75 years in prison and served 28 of those years. He is currently on parole until 2068. Murrell says that means he can’t use his vote to hold officials accountable for the issues that matter to him and other people who have been affected by incarceration.
The basics of citizenship is the ability to be able to vote, to choose your elected officials, the people that you want to position to help you with your your needs as a community.Jason Wilson
"What policies are gonna help us as a people?" Murrell says. "I'm unashamedly Black. Everything that's coming out of my mouth and out of my heart is for us and about us. We have our own issues that must be addressed by the government."
The American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin says voter disenfranchisement affects African American people disproportionately. In Wisconsin, one out of every nine African Americans is disenfranchised by policies such as voting bans in the Wisconsin Statutes compared to one out of every 50 Wisconsin voters.
Though Murrell and other people still "on paper" cannot vote, Murrell still finds ways for people in prison to engage in democracy.
"The guys in prison can't vote, but their loved ones can," Murrell says. "We encourage the guys in prison to send us a list of 20 people, 20 of their loved ones, and we'll reach out to them and find out if they're registered to vote. If they are, we ask if they need a ride to the polls. Whatever they need to get them part of this democratic process, we aid them."
Murrell plans to keep hosting the rally outside of the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility every month on the 23rd. The number 23 symbolizes the 23 hours that some incarcerated people are locked in cells each day. WISDOM is collecting signatures for a petition they plan to present to the lawmakers in Madison. It calls for the governor to use an executive order to restore voting rights to people on community supervision for a felony conviction.
