Alabama law raised obstacles on his 5-year journey to the ballot box. He overcame them all.
When Richard Williams turned 58 in 2013, he set a series of goals for himself. Already in recovery for substance use disorder, he would continue to avoid drugs. He would pay off his debts, then get his Alabama driver’s license and a car. And he would get registered to vote. What Richard didn’t realize at the time was how difficult it would be to get registered, were it even possible, given Alabama’s confusing felony disenfranchisement law.
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SPLC: How many more must perish in ICE camps?
Santiago Baten-Oxlaj, a 34-year-old Guatemalan man, became the second known person to die from COVID-19 in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He was detained at Stewart Detention Center, a massive migrant prison in rural Georgia operated by the private prison corporation CoreCivic. ICE and CoreCivic have failed to prevent the COVID-19 outbreak at Stewart that experts repeatedly warned inevitable if not for the mass release of the people trapped inside.
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In a victory for voting rights, court rules Florida pay-to-vote system unconstitutional
In a significant decision for voting rights, a federal court on Sunday affirmed voting rights for hundreds of thousands of Floridians who are unable to satisfy the state’s onerous monetary requirements to vote in the 2020 elections and beyond. The decision struck down provisions in Florida law SB 7066 that required people with felony convictions to pay off legal financial obligations (LFOs) before they can vote. The court held the law discriminates against those who lack a genuine ability to satisfy their LFOs.
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Teaching as activism, teaching as care
“This pandemic, as plagues did centuries ago, has laid bare this country’s deepest injustices,” Jamilah Pitts writes for Teaching Tolerance. “This is not something that we have to ignore now. In many ways, we should press into it. … The ending of the physical gathering of our classes does not mean that we cannot still teach critically in critical times.” Pitts’ article includes resources for educators interested in diving more deeply into teaching that is rooted in justice, caring and activism – especially in these difficult times.
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News You Should Know

The many varieties of voter suppression (The American Prospect)

Do detainee transfers increase COVID-19 cases? Judge orders ICE to disclose data (Miami Herald)

Voting politics heating up in Alabama (WTUG)

After violence erupted in an ICE detention facility, a message left on a window said, ‘HELP US’ (CNN)

Florida teacher who sparked inclusion training continued posting homophobic memes (Sarasota Herald-Tribune)

Second bill to expand mail-in balloting fails on party-line vote (The Advocate)