Phantom Constituents in Maine’s Regional School Unit 13:
How the Census Bureau’s outdated method of counting prisoners harms democracy
Petition
- Petition for residents of Cushing, Owls Head, Rockland, South Thomaston, St. George, and Thomaston asking the Maine Department of Education Commissioner to declare Regional School Unit 13’s voting system in violation of the principles of “One Person One Vote”.
- Questions & Answers on petition
Advocacy
- Letter from the Prison Policy Initiative and Demos asking the Maine Department of Education Commissioner to declare the RSU 13 apportionment in violation of the one person one vote principles [PDF], June 11, 2009
- Letter to the editor, from Josiah Wilson, July 11, 2009
Coverage
-
Policy group calls RSU 13 apportionment unconstitutional, by Shlomit Auciello, Herald Gazette (Rockland, ME), January 15, 2009
Recommended Reading:
About the Prison Policy Initiative
Learn more about the organization behind the Prison Gerrymandering Project.
The Racial Geography of Mass Incarceration
The transfer of Black and Latino incarcerated people to communities very different than their own is a nationwide problem.
Are legislative maps hurting prison reforms?
Pam Adams explains how in her downstate Illinois column.
Do prisons draw in Census money for their host communities? No.
We explain that prison gerrymandering is bad for democracy but federal & state aid are not impacted.
Events
- August 5, 2024:
On Wednesday, August 5, 2024, at 3 PM EST, we’ll host a panel of advocates to discuss the importance and challenges of helping people in prison testify at legislative hearings, and introduce our new legislative testimony toolkit.
Panelists include: Anthony Blakenship of Civil Survival, Jesse White of Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, and incarcerated journalist Christopher Blackwell.
Register here.
Not near you?
Invite us to your city, college or organization.