John,

It might feel strange to celebrate the Fourth of July this year. How can we celebrate hope, patriotism, and a government of, by, and for the people when we’re suffering from a pandemic, Americans are protesting in the streets, and our political system is plagued by corruption?

I’ve been through a lot in my life, and I haven’t lost hope.

Here’s my story:

When I was 34 years old, battling my own homelessness and drug addiction, I was sentenced to prison for 15 years.

After I was released in 3 years, I decided to turn my life around and help other people like me. I checked myself into drug treatment, then enrolled in college to start following a new dream of becoming a lawyer. But in my home state of Florida, former felons couldn’t vote unless their civil rights were restored. Not having my civil rights restored also meant that I couldn’t be admitted to the Florida Bar, or even own a home.

Because Florida had a lifetime ban on civil rights and voting for people with a previous felony conviction, I couldn’t even cast a vote for my wife when she ran for state office.

That’s what pushed me to reform the system that disenfranchised me and so many others like me.

I spent the next few years building a massive coalition of Republicans and Democrats to restore the right to vote to 1.4 million returning citizens in Florida. In 2018, we won our campaign with 65% support – a landslide victory!

If I’ve learned anything from this journey, it’s that one person can make a difference. You can make a difference.

I’m also on RepresentUs’s Board of Directors. This year, we are supporting 17 statewide anti-corruption campaigns that can unrig our corrupt political system and restore a government that represents all of us, not just big donors and special interests. Each of these campaigns needs our help – from anti-gerrymandering in Virginia to election reform in Alaska to campaign finance reform in Oregon.

These campaigns bring hope to millions of Americans who know that our rigged political system impacts every issue we all care about, like ending our prison-industrial complex.

I took a leap of faith to start the Florida Rights Restoration coalition and the Amendment 4 campaign, but with that small step, we were able to help millions more Americans vote. One step forward is all it takes. I hope you’ll support these campaigns by joining the Common Wealth with a monthly donation of any amount. We can’t do it without you.

Let’s move forward together. Thank you for standing with me.

Desmond Meade RepresentUs Board of Directors; Executive Director, FRRC