Ohio Congresswoman Emilia Sykes, other Congressional Dems introduce the End Prison Gerrymandering Act...By Clevelandurbannews.com, Ohio's Black digital news leader
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Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes (OH-13) joined Reps. Deborah Ross (NC-02), Mark Pocan (WI-02), and Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05) to reintroduce the End Prison Gerrymandering Act. The legislation would help ensure equal representation for all Americans by requiring the U.S. Census Bureau to count incarcerated individuals at their last place of residence, rather than the prison where they are held at the time of the Census.
Find the Bill text here.
Rep. Sykes is an Akron Democrat who represents Ohio's 13th congressional district and is one of three Black women in Congress from Ohio.
Currently, incarcerated people are counted as residents of correctional facilities, often located in rural areas, rather than the communities where they lived, worked, and maintained family ties before incarceration. This practice, known as prison gerrymandering, distorts population counts and gives disproportionate political power to some districts at the expense of urban communities and communities of color.
“All Americans have a constitutional right to equal representation in their government. That’s why I am proud to co-sponsor the End Prison Gerrymandering Act, which will ensure incarcerated people are fairly counted in the places they call home, in communities where they have ties, family, and friends,” said Rep. Sykes. “This legislation will allow fair and accurate representation for all communities—rural, urban, and suburban— to create a stronger, more representative democracy.”
Congresswoman Ross agreed and said that North Carolina has a history of gerrymandering.
“North Carolina has a long history of manipulating voters’ places of residence to produce maps that benefit the party in power, including through prison gerrymandering,” said Rep. Ross. “Across the country, we are witnessing unprecedented attempts to rollback voting rights and dilute voters’ voices, particularly voters of color. Now more than ever, we need maps that are fair and ensure that every voter can fully participate in our democracy. I’m proud to lead my colleagues in introducing legislation that will end prison gerrymandering at the federal level.”
Rep. Pocan called it presumptuous to assume that incarcerated people, a disproportionate number of them Black, view being caged in a prison cell as their home.
“Nearly no one would consider the facility in which they’re incarcerated home,” said Rep. Pocan. “The current Prison Gerrymandering practice is wrong, giving undue power to certain regions of the country and to elected officials who do not value their concerns. We must end this practice and count people from where they came and most likely will return to once their sentences are finished. I thank Congresswoman Ross for her leadership on this issue.”
Rep Cleaver added that prison gerrymandering has become political and anti-American.
“The practice of prison gerrymandering puts the interests of partisan politicians above the wishes of our communities, using incarcerated Americans as unwilling pawns in the process,” said Rep. Cleaver. “The American people are sick and tired of partisan trickery that undermines the voice of voters, and I’m proud to join Representatives Ross, Sykes, and Pocan to introduce the End Prison Gerrymandering Act to outlaw this damaging practice once and for all.”
Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most-read Black digital newspaper and blog in Ohio and the Midwest. Tel. 216-659-0473. Email-editor@clevelandurbannews.com.
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