TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Next month, voters will decide if voting rights will be restored for felons.
Michael Dodson and St. Paul's United Methodist Jail and Prison Ministry will hold a forum day Monday to inform the public about everything at stake in Amendment 4.
The amendment would allow felons, other than those convicted of murder or sex crimes, to regain the right to vote without a hearing. As of right now, nearly 1.5 million Floridians can't cast a ballot due to their criminal history.
The forum will feature a panel of lawyers, civil rights activists, and educators.
Michael Dodson, the organizer and prison and jail minister for St. Paul's says that the current law is all a larger part of Florida's civil right's history.
"The current system owes itself to a scheme that was in response to a number of African Americans being able to vote after Reconstruction," said Dodson. "We see this a leftover of Jim Crow in Florida. That lends itself to being the largest civil rights issue we've ever had to vote for on the Florida ballot."
If you're interested in joining in on the conversation, it starts at 6 p.m. Monday at Sanders Hall. That's at St. Paul's United Methodist.
Voting for Amendment 4 will be Nov. 6.
