LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — When you are convicted of a crime you can sometimes lose the right to vote
However, through the process of rehabilitation and a non-profit that has been working to educate people on how to get registered— the ability to vote can potentially be regained.
Kwami Abdul-Bey, the Co-Director of Washitaw Foothills Youth Media Arts & Literacy Collective has been working across the state of Arkansas to educate former inmates on the voting process.
Abdul-Bey pointed out Arkansas's known history of having low voter turnout and said that by reaching marginalized groups, we can work to bring those numbers up.
He explained how some former inmates don't believe they have the right to vote and are often surrounded by shame and guilt. So he advises people in the community to meet them where they are and remind them that they are fellow Arkansans.
According to the United States Department of Justice, there is a list of things people convicted of a crime must do to regain their right to vote, and it depends on the crime that they were convicted of.
They must take proof that they have completed their sentence to their local county clerk, complete all probation and parole, and lastly pay any fines and fees.
Abdul-Bey said he comes across hundreds of situations of former inmates not knowing their rights and shared how his most recent encounter was with a gentleman in Mayflower.
The man walked up to Adbul-Bey and told him his story of being convicted of a crime 20 years ago. He then asked if he had completed all the necessary steps, and the man responded that he had already done it all.
Abdul-Bey then told the man that he was registered to fact and he was ecstatic.
The goal of the non-profit has been to register about 50,000 to vote people. They've been working toward that goal by focusing on high schoolers, former inmates, and those in assisted living.
However, to do all that Abdul-Bey explained that they need more manpower to make it possible.
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