Youngkin spites restoration of voting rights

The roughly 1,000 people a month released from Virginia prisons are no longer having their voting rights restored almost automatically.

Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin has reversed the state process that restored without any paperwork the right of former inmates to again cast ballots, serve on juries and run for office.

That policy began revving up 10 years ago under a Republican predecessor, Robert F. McDonnell, and had been expanded under two Democratic governors, Terry McAuliffe and Ralph S. Northam.

Despite insisting that he believes in second chances, Gov. Youngkin has returned to the practice of requiring felons to apply individually for restoration which he has the sole power to grant.

The governor’s decision became public last week in a response that Secretary of the Commonwealth Kay Coles James provided to a query from Chesapeake state Sen. Lionel Spruill Sr., chair of the Senate Privileges and Elections Committee.

Sen. Spruill sought the information after receiving concerns from a Northern Virginia senator, Scott Surovell, that the policy of automatic restoration of rights had been scrapped.

The Richmond Crusade for Voters is among those speaking out against the policy change.

In a statement issued this week, the city’s oldest and largest African-American political group argued that the policy change flouts Gov. Youngkin’s portrayal of himself “as a good Christian man”. … God is the model of grace. So wouldn’t you think the governor would want to follow that model and grant that same grace and remove the barriers to full citizenship?”

In the statement, the Crusade noted that the governor has set “no criteria by which” applicants can know whether they will be eligible for restoration, returning to a haphazard system that existed before Gov. McDonnell.

The Crusade also stated that Gov. Youngkin’s action restores Virginia as the only state besides Kentucky that does not grant “full voter rights to ex-offenders” upon their release. “Surely we can do better.”

The General Assembly never assured the policy would continue no matter who was governor, with Republican members generally rejecting proposals for state constitutional amendments that would do so.

Gov. McDonnell’s initiative largely impacted non-violent offenders, whose rights were automatically restored if they had paid off their court debts and completed any probation or parole obligations.

Among the thousands Gov. McDonnell restored to full citizenship is current Portsmouth Delegate Don L. Scott Jr., the House minority leader, who served time for a federal drug conviction in the 1990s. Delegate Scott went on to earn a law degree and win election to the General Assembly as a result of the McDonnell initiative.

Gov. McDonnell’s successor, Terry McAuliffe, expanded the initiative to all offenders and ended the practice of requiring court debts to first be paid, restoring the rights of 173,000 people before leaving office.

His successor, Gov. Ralph S. Northam, scrapped any condition in restoring the rights of 124,000 people during his four-year term.

During the first three months after taking office in January 2022 when Gov. Northam’s approach remained intact, Gov. Youngkin restored the rights of 3,500 people, according to his administration’s report.

Gov. Youngkin changed the policy in May 2022, and rights restorations fell to just 800 between May and October and have continued to remain low since then — though he made it seem as if he was still behind his predecessor’s policy in issuing a press release just before the November 2022 election touting the more than 4,000 restorations he had accomplished since taking office.

A Black woman’s unequal cost of protesting

The 45th president is in the news again, facing indictments in New York and Georgia for criminal behavior regarding illegally paying a porn star (New York) and election tampering (Georgia).

While Donald Trump has not been indicted, he already has wallowed in his victimhood, describing the legal proceedings as “political” and biased.

Mr. Trump’s attorneys have attempted to slow the process in Georgia by lobbing accusations against Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who happens to be a Black woman. She is biased, they say, incapable of prosecuting. As usual, the 45th president and his ilk have it all wrong. And as he has done for the past 50 years, the Orange Man attempts to wiggle out of his legal challenges.

The former president has attempted to rally his troops, just as he did on Jan. 6, 2021. Fewer may be inclined to take it to the streets, given that about a thousand insurrectionists have been charged for disorderly and disruptive conduct and more. The average sentence for these miscreants was 16 months, but so far, at least five have been sentenced to more than seven years. Some were found not guilty, and many received minor sentences.

Contrast the treatment of traitorous criminals with the treatment of Brittany Martin, a South Carolina woman who participated in a May 2020 protest against police brutality and the murder of George Floyd. She was vocal with a police

Julianne Malveaux

officer, shouting “no justice, no peace,” and, allegedly, “I’m willing to die for the Black, are you willing to die for the Blue? This is just a job for you; this is my life.”

Ms. Martin’s comments were perceived as “threats” (she had no weapon), and she was charged with aggravated breach of peace, instigating a riot, and five counts of threatening police officers. She was grossly overcharged for her verbal reaction to police violence and was sentenced, in May 2022, to four years in jail. Appeals to shorten her sentence were unsuccessful, and there is evidence that she was brutally treated in jail. She was disciplined because she refused to cut her dreadlocks for religious reasons.

Ms. Martin got a sentence of four years for yelling at a police officer. Most insurrectionists on Jan. 6, 2021, got less than a year and a half. If everyone who shouted “no justice, no peace” at a rally were sent to jail, the jails would overflow. Why was she electively prosecuted?

Ms. Martin was harshly treated and given an unfairly lengthy sentence because she was a Black woman who chose to stand up for her rights, including her right to protest. Perhaps the judge in the case decided to make an example of her. But as the former president attempts to get the misguided morons who support him out to protest, I am reminded of the unequal ways “justice” (or should we call it just-us) is meted out. Rabid white men assaulted Capitol police officers. Many escaped judgment. Others received a slap on the wrist. A Black woman fighting for Black people gets an unreasonably long sentence, and her pregnancy is imperiled. She gave birth in November 2022 while incarcerated, receiving neither justice nor mercy.

Ms. Martin has given birth to seven children, losing one to SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and another to gun violence. Before her latest birth, there were four surviving children, and now five children are missing their mother, including an infant who has had no time to bond with her. South Carolina incarcerated a mother for four long years for yelling at a police officer. Federal courts are sentencing insurrectionists to much less time. In some ways, comparing federal courts to state ones is like comparing apples to oranges. Still, the contrast between Ms. Martin’s sentence and those who have done far

Conservative groups don’t speak for all moms

As Women’s History Month comes to a close, I’ve been thinking about moms and honoring motherhood. I’ve written before about how my mom instilled values in me, including respect for everyone’s rights – not just my own. Mom also worked multiple jobs to support our family through some very hard times. She represents my ideal of what a mother should be, without a doubt.

And maybe she would represent yours too, or my neighbor’s. I certainly think so – but the truth is I can’t say for sure, and I can’t insist on it.

Unfortunately, that is exactly what some on the right are trying to do by claiming to speak for all mothers and even all parents. This effort to steal the moral authority of motherhood only for themselves is wrong, and it has to be stopped.

The far right group Moms for Liberty is a marquee example with an especially insidious name. The group is behind book banning efforts in numerous states. Its main targets are books and materials that address race, racism, and gender and gender identity issues. It supports a bill that is coming to the floor of the U.S. House as I write this, called the Parents’ Bill of Rights.

This House bill would more accurately be called a bill of rights for some parents. Moms – and dads, like myself – who oppose the bill see it for what it is: A vehicle that opens the door to more book censorship and book bans, not to mention

Svante Myrick

bullying and discrimination. Instead of creating a school environment where children thrive and all parents are treated as partners, this bill prevents students from learning and teachers from teaching. In fact, supporters of the bill rejected amendments to fund Statewide Family Engagement Centers and to designate a parent coordinator at every school.

Fortunately, the bill has little chance of passage in the Senate. But it mirrors “parental rights bills” that are passing in several states. Moms for Liberty is often behind these efforts. Of course, this “pro-liberty” group actually is infringing on your liberty – specifically, what political scientists call your “negative liberty” or your right to pursue your interests free from interference from others.

But interference with your choices is what Moms for Liberty is all about. They and similar groups want to decide what is right not just for their kids, but for your kids, too. The rights of moms, and all parents, with a different view do not enter into the equation.

Far right groups such as Moms for Liberty are wellfunded, well-connected and well-organized. They have a head start. There is an urgent need to push back against the wave of censorship and repression that they have set in motion. I feel especially strongly about this as a Black parent, because so much of the censorship is aimed at Black history and studies. The list of states that have either banned the AP AfricanAmerican studies course or put it on the back burner for “review” is up to six, and growing.

For those who want to be part of the fight for inclusive education and against censorship, the American Library Association’s Unite Against Book Bans campaign website is a good place to start. It includes up to date information and a toolkit. Attending school board meetings and speaking out are also really important.

As I said, I can think of no better role model, moral guide and inspiration than my mom. But I will always respect your right to feel the same way about yours. Groups like Moms for Liberty just won’t.

The writer is president of People For the American Way.

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Donald Trump may or may not get indicted or convicted, and he may or may not be forced to don a jumpsuit the same color as his hair used to be. But those of us who watch the so-called justice system are almost certain that he’ll get a break, just like his supporters, the Jan. 6 insurrectionists are getting.

Yelling is not the same as breaking into a federal building, assaulting Capitol police officers, breaking windows, and busting into Speaker Pelosi’s office. The insurrectionists excuse their lawlessness by leaning on “free speech” rights. Where are the rights of Brittany Martin and the other fearless freedom fighters treated shabbily by the courts?

The writer is an economist, author, and dean of the College of Ethnic Studies at Cal State LA.

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WASHINGTON

When Richmond area voters elected former Virginia State Sen. Jennifer McClellan to Congress last month, the new federal responsibilities for the veteran state lawmaker were already on the agenda for the seasoned politician.

“The main challenge she faces is being underestimated,” said Sonya Ross, a retired reporter and race and ethnicity editor on Capitol Hill for the Associated Press and currently managing editor of Inside Climate News.

“The structures are the same.”

“Still, Rep. McClellan will have to ‘outdo success’ in order to be considered successful,” said Ms. Ross, likening Rep. McClellan to Vice President Kamala Harris and House predecessors such as Maxine Waters of California and Shelia Jackson Lee of Texas.

Known as an “old boys club” for decades, that diminishing image of the once largely male population of law and policy makers on Capitol Hill in the House and Senate still lingers, Ms. Ross said. Vice President Harris came to the job (in the Senate and White House) as a seasoned