 Blackstone presents America's disenfranchised while restoring their vote can save the soul of our democracy by Desmond Mead. This book is read by Dion Graham. Introduction Like a lot of people, I spent very little time contemplating the connection between law, criminal justice, and democracy. It wasn't until I had a direct experience of punishment for breaking the law and becoming an advocate for change, ultimately leading a campaign for constitutional reform in Florida, that I was able to thread the needle between all three. Civic, political, and social life in the United States is governed by statutes that most of us seldom consider unless we are directly confronted by their consequences for ourselves and others. Yet I also believe that the infiltration of partisanship in all of these areas threatens the democracy we aspire to have. As I learned first hand from my experience with crime and punishment, a story I'll share later in this essay, sometimes the consequences of conviction are far-reaching with implications beyond the specific statute in question. Until recently, in my home state of Florida, anyone who was incarcerated for felony would not only be required to serve time, pay fines, and compensate the victims, but would then face the permanent loss of voting rights. That person could never again participate in elections. The punitive law that stripped returning citizens, people who are convicted of crimes, serve time, and then resume regular life and activities after paying their debts, of their vote, disenfranchising millions of Floridians over the decades, fundamentally alters the politics of our state and, arguably, the nation. Right now, in the United States of America, over six million people have paid their debts to society for past mistakes, yet they cannot vote. In 2018, my organization, the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, let a dark horse campaign to change the law in Florida by amending our state constitution at the ballot box. This essay will look at why it was necessary, how we overcame partisanship to win a landslide victory, and how its lessons can help save American democracy. The impact of law and criminal justice. The definition of a felony varies widely from state to state. In Florida, a felony is defined as any crime for which the punishment can exceed a year of imprisonment. Felonies in Florida cover a wide range of illegal behaviors. Additionally, the state also has a low threshold for felony conviction when it comes to some crimes. For years, for instance, Florida's felony theft threshold was just $300, much lower than neighboring states like Georgia or South Carolina, which classify comparable thefts as misdemeanors. Sample complete. Ready to continue?