Empowering Descendant Communities (EDC) to Unlock Democracy
Empowering Descendant Communities to Unlock Democracy is a joint initiative of the Mindich Program for Engaged Scholarship at Harvard College, Healing Our Land, Inc. (HOLI), the African American Coalition Committee (AACC), and the Democracy Behind Bars Coalition (DBBC).
Recognizing that the exclusion of eligible jail voters and the disenfranchisement of people with felony convictions erode political power and worsen the racial biases of the criminal legal system, this project aims to address systemic inequities affecting descendant communities within. We are pursuing this through two mutually supportive paths: establishing jail-based voting and civic education programs, and building the necessary infrastructure to restore voting rights to thousands of individuals.