This week was National Low Income and Homeless Voter Registration week, an effort to register as many homeless and low income citizens as possible before the October 4th registration deadline. As part of this project, United Way of King County organized a coalition of volunteers to go to locations in Seattle offering assistance to the homeless to help them register.

The first hour of the day we learned about the registration process and how to deal with issues such as lack of a permanent address and felony convictions. Before today, I didn’t know that every city in the US has a generic post office address, known as general delivery, to which mail can be sent and held on to for a short period of time. While not explicitly for homeless people, it allows them to receive mail without having a permanent residence.

I also learned quite a bit about the impact of a felony conviction (in Washington, at least) on voting rights; most notably, a convicted felon can vote if they have paid off their “legal financial obligations” and proceed through a legal process to restore those rights. The ACLU has a site all about this, or what they call felon enfranchisement. At least one ex-felon I talked to was surprised to learn that the right to vote wasn’t out of reach once convicted.

What struck me most about the ex-felons was just how forthright they were about their crimes. One guy, when asked if he was registered to vote, replied: “I can’t; I’m a former felon and hang out with a pretty tough crowd. I’ve killed two people.” It was a unique experience to say the least. But, once I got over the initial shock of being within arm’s reach of a murderer, I really started to think about how personal (versus generic to humanity) some of these crimes were and just how big of a public threat they are after the harsh experience of prison; and, similarly, how the onerous post-prison conditions undermine rehabilitative efforts and lead to repeat offenses. For instance, incredibly high interest rates are applied to debt they incur as part of the criminal proceedings. How can a former felon recover when heavy financial burdens–exacerbated by the inability to find a quality job due to their conviction–are levied immediately after their release?

I was also surprised by how politically informed some of the homeless and low income people were. If these people, relegated to the destitute fringes of society, know more about civics and public discourse than many other freer citizens, what does that say about this country and our values? And what does it say about our efforts to deny them their right to vote? Maybe it’s the perspective gained from being subjected to the horrifying aspects of our legal system that made these people so keen on paying attention to government. It fits with the typical human condition: people are lackadaisical about matters that don’t affect them. Only when the issues have an impact on their lives do they begin to care.

All-in-all, today was pretty cool. I learned about registration, met other engaged volunteers, had the chance to speak with interesting people, and helped register 6 new voters. It may not seem like a lot, but imagine the impact of groups like ours engaging in similar efforts all across the country.