Comment on a Colleague's Work. (Right to Vote)

The right to vote is one of the many things that make our country special. Without voting, not everyone would have a fair say on what laws get passed and who gets elected. With that being said, I very much agree with Gabriela in her post defending everyone’s right to vote. However, Gabriela states that “People who have unpaid court fines and fees need to be required to vote because they have the right according our constitution.”. I do not agree with the idea that people who have disobeyed the law should still hold their right to vote. Gabriela thoughtfully expresses in her post how voting is a privilege granted to us by the Constitution. Like voting, the right to own a gun or private residence are also privileges, which can and should be taken away if you commit crimes against the Constitution. The government has the right to strip you of certain privileges if you chose to not abide by its laws.

Another point Gabriela brought up was how the right to vote along with other Constitutional rights are stripped from those who are considered poor. According to Gabriela, “our constitution says the government cannot deny poor people basic rights.”. Which is correct, the government has no right to deny the poor of their basic rights, and never has. If you are a citizen of the United States, poor or rich, you are granted the same rights as everyone else. You are only denied of your rights if you are charged for a crime. The government is simply not responsible for one’s financial stances.

All in all, I do agree with Gabriela that voting should be an unalienable right to all citizens of the United States. But I believe that we can all agree that people who do not abide by our nation’s laws should have certain rights stripped from them.