The ACLU of Ohio Foundation will be the central source for voter education at the Puffin Collaborative Film Festival in October at the Gateway Film Center. As the preeminent defender of voting rights in the state of Ohio, the ACLU will be providing voter education material to the formally incarcerated and people with criminal convictions as in OH, an individual who has been convicted of a felony, and who has served his or her sentence, is still permitted to vote if they know what to do! Unfortunately it has been found that the vast numbers of formally incarcerated individuals have no knowledge that their right to vote has been preserved. The ACLU will have materials on hand to target this underserved community, which is should be noted is compromised disproportionately of low-income people and people of color.
Voter education for people with disabilities is another area of concern as recently introduced litigation in the Ohio General Assembly would roll back protections for people with disabilities, including provisions that assist with ballot access. This is important as efforts to curtail early voting puts an undue burden on the disabled who often have a hard time gaining access to transportation. In additional disabled veterans are unduly affected by this legislation.
This education drive will also help students to locate and learn about where they have to vote, and how to access early and absentee voting should they be living near their campus in a county that is not the same as their (parental) home address.
The PFW grant will also allow the ACLU of Ohio to provide 10,000 copies of easy-to-understand VOTER EMPOWERMENT CARDS that summarize key Constitutional Rights; these materials will all be available during the Puffin Collaborative Film Festival
