Midterm elections in the U.S. are 6 days away. The candidates are among the most diverse set to run in the history of the country. Yet over 6 million U.S. citizens will not be able to vote in this potentially history making election due to a prior felony conviction.
The epicenter of the fight for rights restoration is Florida, where disenfranchisement laws are the harshest in the country. On November 6th, Floridians have an opportunity to approve a ballot referendum that would automatically restore voting rights to 1.4 million people. If passed, it would be the greatest act of enfranchisement in the country.
Blocked From The Ballot is a recently launched portrait, video, and interview series about voting in America. To begin, the Blocked From The Ballot team spoke to 8 people across the state of Florida from varying political and socioeconomic backgrounds. The main goals of the project are to shed light on the modern issues of disenfranchisement and to amplify the stories of those without a voice and those protecting the right to vote within their communities.
“We believe that voting is not a political issue. It is our most basic democratic right as citizens,” states Blocked From The Ballot, whose team includes photographer Aundre Larrow and Creative Director and Producer Kelsey Aroian.
Blocked From The Ballot
Photographs by Aundre Larrow
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I wonder why these people have been blocked? Could it be that a conviction of some sort has caused them to lose their right to vote?
Such a powerful photo series – it’s definitely worth viewing the entire set of images and reading the stories