Living in Infamy: Felon Disfranchisement and the History of American Citizenship

by Pippa Holloway

Overview

Living in Infamy examines the history of disfranchisement for criminal conviction in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the post-war South, white southern Democrats expanded the usage of laws disfranchising for crimes of infamy in order to deny African Americans the suffrage rights due them as citizens, employing historical similarities between the legal statuses of slaves and convicts as justification. At the same time, our nation's criminal code changed. The inhumane treatment of prisoners, the expansion of the prison system, the public nature of punishment by forced labor, and the abandonment of the idea of reform and rehabilitation of prisoners all contributed to a national consensus that certain categories of criminals should be permanently disfranchised. As racial barriers to suffrage were challenged and fell, rights remained restricted for persons targeted by such infamy laws; criminal convictions--in place of race--continued the disparity in legal status between whites and African Americans. Decades later, after race-based disfranchisement has officially ended, legislation steeped in a legacy of racial discrimination continues to perpetuate a dichotomy of suffrage and citizenship that still affects our election outcomes today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199976102
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	11/20/2013
Series:	Studies in Crime and Public Policy
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Pippa Holloway is Professor of History at Middle Tennessee State University. She is the author of Sexuality, Politics, and Social Control in Virginia, 1920-1945 and Other Souths: Diversity and Difference in the U.S. South, Reconstruction to Present.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements Preface Introduction 1. "Not infamous, nor subject to another man's will" 2. "Disqualified in Advance" 3. "A Chicken-Stealer Shall Lose His Vote" 4. Furtive Offenses and Robust Crimes 5. Making New Men: Pardons and Restorations of Citizenship Rights 6. Courts, Voting Rights, and Black Protest in the Early 20th Century 7. Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

Editorial Reviews

"Historian Pippa Holloway has written an impressive volume that speaks directly to our time....The book is copiously researched, and it is rooted in narrative accounts and a historical, legal, and constitutional analysis of the role of infamy in citizenship and voting rights....Holloway's book is an important contribution on a cornerstone of democratic participation—the right to vote. She has shown how the historical foundations of infamy set the stage for felon disenfranchisement and its disproportionate racial effects in the present day. Further, she has shown how socioeconomic class also was an impetus to deny the vote to poorer white people. Her book is essential reading."—Paula C. Johnson, Journal of Southern History

"[A]nyone concerned with the fragility of today's participatory democracy and convinced of the importance of historical knowledge in the fight for its restoration will gladly pick detail and precision over style and elegance. Holloway's work deserves everyone's attention."—Volker Janssen, The Journal of American History

"This is a book that needed to be written. For the first time we now have a comprehensive and sophisticated historical analysis of the racial dynamics of felony disenfranchisement as it evolved in the post-Civil War South. It's not a pretty picture, but it helps us to understand how we came to a point where U.S. policies in this regard are far out of line with the rest of the democratic world."—Marc Mauer, The Sentencing Project, and author of Race to Incarcerate

"Historians, legal scholars, and public policymakers will all profit from reading this fascinating account of the origins and development of felon disfranchisement in the United States in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Based on prodigious research in previously unexplored sources, Living in Infamy meticulously shows how ideas about race, class, and social status, together with partisan political maneuvering, continue to shape attempts to engage in voter suppression in the twenty-first century. It deftly complicates our notions of who gets to practice citizenship."—Steven F. Lawson, author of Running for Freedom

"Living in Infamy is an outstanding introduction to the complicated racial politics that birthed felon disfranchisement laws and ultimately relegated millions to second-class status in the United States. This meticulous, impeccable history is packed with fresh insights about how we, as a nation, managed to fall so far short of our democratic ideals. A must-read for all those who hope to understand why so many Americans are still denied the most basic and fundamental of all rights: the right to vote."—Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow

"Recommended Book" of the Drug Policy Alliance

"Living in Infamy is a meaningful, original, and significant work of history. Based on exhaustive research in local, state, and federal sources, it investigates the complex history of felon disfranchisement and race in the United States over the course of nearly two centuries. Holloway argues that the concept of 'infamy' marked felons and, eventually, African Americans, as degraded individuals unworthy of the privilege of the franchise....Her study suggests a new understanding of why American politicians have a long history of narrowing the electorate through disfranchisement, and why the promise of full citizenship and voting protection for African Americans was so readily upended....Living in Infamy is an outstanding achievement that deserves a wide scholarly and popular audience."—American Historical Review

"Holloway's research provides a well-rounded historical analysis of infamy, felony, disfranchisement, and the social construction of citizenship. It is well written, easily approachable, and understandable. I would highly recommend this book, either for personal reading or for courses in sociology, criminology, and public policy. It provides a rich account of felony disfranchisement, supply with historical documents and historical narratives."—Criminal Justice Review

"This book is a compelling and provides an important insight into the racial component that still informs the issues of felon disfranchisement today."—International Journal of Legal Information

"This is a well-researched book using original archival sources, state constitutions, and lawmakers' remarks. I highly recommend this book to those interested in 'collateral sanctions,' 'invisible punishment,' and general reintegration for ex-offenders in the community."—Corrections Today

From the Publisher