Rutgers Spends Constitution Day Fighting for Equal Voting Rights
By Daryl C. Hannah
September 19, 2008
Keywords: Constitution Day,
Rutgers, 14th Amendment, Citizenship Day, ex-felons, voting rights, Supreme
Court
Students and members of the
Newark, N.J. community gathered at Rutgers University Newark to celebrate the
fourth national U.S. Constitution Day. The day, also called Citizenship Day,
commemorates Sept. 17, 1787, the day the U.S. Constitution was adopted by the
Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
"First of all, this is a
federal mandate. But beyond that, I think it's critical that young people who
are learning concepts of government be engaged by a process where they can learn
the effects of the constitution on everyday issues," says Marsha Brown, vice
chancellor of student and community affairs at Rutgers University.
But this year's celebration
was more than the traditional reading of the constitution. Attendees were
invited to take part in discussions focusing on this year's theme, "The
Constitution of Denying Ex Offenders the Right to Vote."
Currently, there are 5
million ex-felons, the majority of whom are Black and Latino, unable to vote
thanks to a 1972 Supreme Court decision.
"This is infringement.
[The late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist] distorted the 14th Amendment and
made it possible to disproportionately disfranchise such a large proportion of
racial minorities," says Frank Askin, a law professor in the Rutgers University
School of Law's Newark Campus and former general counsel with the American Civil
Liberties Union [ACLU]. "The Constitution says that all groups should have equal
rights, but because of racial profiling, the political power of racial
minorities is diluted."
And understanding one's
rights is exactly the point Brown wants to drive home: "It's critical that young
people are engaged where they are taught the what's more fundamental than one's
right to vote," she says.
Send Your Comments About This Article Now
©DiversityInc. Reproduction in any format is absolutely prohibited.
|
