Let My People Vote: My Battle to Restore the Civil Rights of Returning Citizens

Desmond Meade was chosen as a MacArthur Fellow in 2021 
The inspiring and eye-opening true story of one man’s undying belief in the power of a fully enfranchised nation.\n“You may think the right to vote is a small matter, and if you do, I would bet you have never had it taken away from you.” Thus begins the story of Desmond Meade and his inspiring journey to restore voting rights to roughly 1.4 million returning citizens in Florida—resulting in a stunning victory in 2018 that enfranchised the most people at once in any single initiative since women’s suffrage.\nLet My People Vote is the deeply moving, personal story of Meade’s life, his political activism, and the movement he spearheaded to restore voting rights to returning citizens who had served their terms. Meade survived a tough childhood only to find himself with a felony conviction. Finding the strength to pull his life together, he graduated summa cum laude from college, graduated from law school, and married. But because of his conviction, he was not even allowed to sit for the bar exam in Florida. And when his wife ran for state office, he was filled with pride—but not permitted to vote for her.\nMeade takes us on a journey from his time in homeless shelters, to the exhilarating, joyful night in November of 2018, when Amendment 4 passed with 65 percent of the vote. Meade’s story, and his commitment to a fully enfranchised nation, will prove to readers that one person really can make a difference.

Biographies & Memoirs

Meade, Desmond

Arts & Literature

Beacon Press

Desmond Meade was a convicted felon who turned his life around and got a law degree; when it came time to vote for his wife for state office, he found he had been disenfranchised. Desmond Meade survived a tough childhood only to find himself with a felony conviction. He further survived hardships that led him to the brink of suicide. Finding the strength to pull his life together, he graduated from law school and married. When his wife ran for state office, he was filled with pride--but not permitted to vote for her. He spearheaded a movement to restore voting rights to felons who had served their terms, and in November of 2018, Amendment 4 passed with 65% of the vote. Today, Desmond continues his justice work, including fighting back against new restrictions placed on Florida voters, restrictions that have been likened to Jim Crow laws. In this book he tells the story of his battles on all fronts, and of his undying belief in the power of a fully enfranchised nation.

The Lawrence and Lynne Brown Democracy Medal, presented by the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State, recognizes outstanding individuals, groups, and organizations that produce innovations to further democracy in the United States or around the world. Voting is foundational in a democracy, yet over six million American citizens remain stripped of their ability to participate in elections. Once convicted of a felony, people who complete their sentences reenter society, but no longer with the civil rights they once had. They may return to school, secure employment to provide for their families, and become law-abiding, tax-paying citizens--sometimes for decades--and still be denied the voting rights afforded to every other citizen. Desmond Meade, director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and a returning citizen himself, played an instrumental role in the landslide 2018 Amendment 4 victory in Florida, which used the ballot box to restore voting rights to 1.4 million Floridians with a previous felony conviction. Meade argues how, state by state, America can do better. His efforts in Florida present a compelling argument that creating access to democracy for those living on the fringes of society will create a more vibrant and robust democracy for all. He is the winner of the 2021 Brown Democracy Medal for his continuing work to restore voting rights and connect Americans along shared social values.

America's Disenfranchised: Why Restoring Their Vote Can Save the Soul of Our Democracy (Brown Democracy Medal)

History

Americas

Cornell Selects

Politics & Social Sciences

Sociology

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