LeBron James group to donate $100,000 toward paying Florida ex-felons' fines so they can vote
LeBron James is getting involved in helping ex-felons register to vote in Florida.
More Than A Vote, the group that James helped establish this year, on Friday announced it would donate $100,000 toward paying fees and fines of people in Florida with past felony convictions so they can register to vote, Politico reports. The group is raising the money to be donated to the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition fines and fees fund. Additionally, the group will host an online screening of a documentary about the late Rep. John Lewis, and proceeds will go to the fund.
"Your right to vote shouldn't depend upon whether or not you can pay to exercise it," Miami Heat player Udonis Haslem, who is also a member of More Than A Vote, said.
Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2018 that restored voting rights to felons who have completed their sentences, but the state later passed a law saying that they must pay off court fees and fines before being able to register to vote. That law is facing legal challenges, and a judge in May found it unconstitutional, saying it creates a "pay-to-vote system." But the Supreme Court has allowed the law to stay in effect for now while the legal challenges continue.
More Than A Vote was formed in June amid the nationwide protests over the police killing of George Floyd, and the group describes its priority as "combating systemic, racist voter suppression by educating, energizing, and protecting our community in 2020." James said in an interview with The New York Times last month, "Because of everything that's going on, people are finally starting to listen to us — we feel like we're finally getting a foot in the door. How long is up to us. We don't know. But we feel like we're getting some ears and some attention, and this is the time for us to finally make a difference."
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