The Florida Rights Restoration Coalition has teamed up with the organization More Than A Vote. More Than A Vote donated $100,000 to FRRC’s Fines and Fees Fund. The Fund helps “returning citizens pay fines & fees.” At the end of July, the Fines and Fees Fund reached more than $2 million.
But to understand why this is important you must backtrack just a bit to election day November 6, 2018. On this day, voters were presented with several amendments including Amendment 4.
Simply put, Amendment 4 automatically restored the voting rights of those convicted of a felony who had completed their sentence, including parole and probation. Amendment 4 passed with more than 64 percent of the vote. According to the Florida Division of Elections that equates to 5,148,926 votes in favor of Amendment 4.
Desmond Meade, FRRC Executive Director led the charge for Amendment 4. According to Meade the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, “initially formed in 2003 to address the issue of felon disenfranchisement in Florida.”
Amendment 4 has changed since passing in 2018. In 2019 the Florida Legislature urged by Governor Ron DeSantis added the requirement that those affected would not only have to complete their sentence, but they would also be required to pay any fines and fees associated with the crime. Amendment 4 proponents said this amounts to a “poll tax.”
Since then Amendment 4 has gone back and forth in the courts. After a victory for supporters earlier this year, the Amendment as it was written is still not in effect. There’s a hearing this month to determine where it goes from here.
Where does Amendment 4 stand today? Check out the podcast below with Desmond Meade. Listen to the interview to find out what Meade says about the impact of COVID-19 from FRCC’s vantage point, the question he wasn’t asked by the police when he was arrested, and his conclusion about the right and left when traveling the state educating the public about Amendment 4.
Meade says he’s looking forward to voting in his first election this month.
Let’s not forget about More Than A Vote. The organization’s website says: “We are Black athletes and artists working together. Our priority right now is combating systemic, racist voter suppression by educating, energizing, and protecting our community in 2020.”