by Peter Wagner,
February 2, 2010
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This afternoon, the Wisconsin Assembly held a hearing on AJR63 [PDF], the Census Adjustment Amendment, today. The video and audio of the Assembly Committee on Elections and Campaign Reform hearing is available online courtesy of Wisconsin Eye (start at 57:37 in). The amendment would prohibit the state and local governments from using prison populations to pad legislative districts.
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February 2, 2010
Census Bureau counts Illinois prisoners in wrong place; access to democracy distorted
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — The 2010 Census is rapidly approaching, but an old error threatens the count, charges a new report by the non-profit Prison Policy Initiative. The report, Importing Constituents: Prisoners and Political Clout in Illinois, explains that the U.S. Census counts people incarcerated in state and federal prisons as residents of the prison location, and that creates big problems for democracy at both the state and local level. “Crediting Chicago’s population to downstate prisons changes the balance of power in Illinois and within rural counties,” said Executive Director and report co-author Peter Wagner.
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by Peter Wagner,
February 1, 2010
We’ve added a page of materials for people organizing against prison-based gerrymandering in Wisconsin. Included is information about the reform efforts, background materials and 16 fact sheets.
