Help End Prison Gerrymandering
Prison gerrymandering funnels political power away from urban communities to legislators who have prisons in their (often white, rural) districts. More than two decades ago, the Prison Policy Initiative put numbers on the problem and sparked the movement to end prison gerrymandering.
Can you help us continue the fight? Thank you.
—Peter Wagner, Executive DirectorDonate
Can you help us continue the fight? Thank you.
—Peter Wagner, Executive DirectorDonate
Imported "Constituents": Incarcerated People and Political Clout in Connecticut
Our report about the 2011 districts:
by Peter Wagner
Foreword by Bilal Dabir Sekou, PhD, and
Cheri Quickmire
April 2013
- Appendices:
- Appendix H: Incarcerated populations and demographics of Connecticut state house districts
- Appendix S: Incarcerated populations and demographics of Connecticut state senate districts
- Town of residence of incarcerated inmates [PDF] by Christopher Reinhart, Office of Legislative Research, Connecticut General Assembly, March 22, 2010
Organizing and Campaign resources
- The Connecticut resource page is an actively maintained list of links to fact sheets, news articles, testimony, and other resources on prison-based gerrymandering in Connecticut.
Our report about the 2001 districts:
by Peter Wagner and Christian de Ocejo,
March 2010
- Report
- Press release: Representatives Lawlor and Holder-Winfield announce legislation to end prison-based gerrymandering; National advocates release report showing 7 Connecticut legislative districts are missing 5% of their required population, distorting democracy, March 25, 2010
- Appendix: All districts with state and federal prisons
Recommended Reading:
About the Prison Policy Initiative
Learn more about the organization behind the Prison Gerrymandering Project.
In prisons, Blacks and Latinos do the time while Whites get the jobs
We explore the racial disparity inside prisons.
Rome NY ends prison gerrymandering, Census Bureau can do better
Rome finally corrected the problem of prison gerrymandering within its borders; other cities and counties need the Census Bureau's help.
Prison-based gerrymandering's historical precedent
This is not the first time a policy barred people of color from the polls and transferred their political power to white voters.