Herald Leader Letter to the Editor for Voting Rights

Central KY Chapter members of KFTC have been concentrating lately on writing letters to the editor about different issues we collectively care about to have an impact on the General Assembly.  Members work separately to write letters, but are also starting to come together once a week to write together.  Feel free to join us.

Weekly Central KY Letter Writing Gathering – Sundays at 2pm at Third Street Stuff (on the corner of Third Street and Limestone) in Lexington.

This letter by member Caitlin Powell was published in the Herald-Leader yesterday. 

Return Felons' Rights

February is Black History Month, and every year on Martin Luther King Day in January, Lexington celebrates King's message of hope, peace and equality.

This is also a good time to assess the current state of equality and fairness, and to ask what more we can do to bring King's vision to reality.

How does Kentucky measure up? One of the most basic rights that we have as citizens of Kentucky and the United States is the right to vote.

However, thousands of Kentucky citizens, including many African Americans, do not have a voice in their government.

Why does this disparity exist? Kentucky has the toughest laws for restoring voting rights to former felons who have served their time. If we truly care about equality, we should support former felons in their fight to get back the right to vote.

King, no doubt, would agree.

Caitlin Powell
Lexington