Give the Gift of Citizenship

Give the gift of citizenship, not just to thousands of your fellow Kentuckians but to the Commonwealth as a whole, by supporting Rep. Jesse Crenshaw's BR1, to restore voting rights to non-violent felons who have served their sentences.

"The right to vote is so essential, so much a part of the U.S. and Kentucky Constitutions, one of the most fundamental rights that a person has," Crenshaw said. "Once you pay your debt to society, then, in my opinion, we as a society should welcome you back as a full citizen."

Kentucky and Virginia are the only two states that permanently strip felons of their civil rights, such as voting, serving on juries or holding public office. It's a pretty effective way of ensuring that those who have paid their debt to society never get a chance to succeed on the outside, and end up back in prison.

Read the whole thing, including a heart-warming story of a woman who is defying the odds of success after prison, and details about a rally to support Crenshaw's bill in Lexington Wednesday.