Albany, New York – Assemblyman David Weprin, Assembly Correction Committee Chair, and the Rikers Debate Project held a public debate on whether people in prison should be given the right to vote. The debate featured students and instructors from the Rikers Debate Project, including students formerly incarcerated at Rikers Island in New York City and professionals from the five boroughs, partnering on debate teams to argue the positives and negatives of expanding voter enfranchisement to prisons.

Debaters on the ‘Government’ side, who supported the expansion of voting rights to people in prisons, included Rikers Debate Project Founder Josh Morrison and former Rikers Debate Project student Felix Guzman. The ‘Opposition’ side, who were proponents of limiting enfranchisement for the incarcerated was represented by Rikers Debate Instructor Mary Crippen and Rikers Debate Project Fellow and former student Camilla Broderick. The debate was won by the ‘Opposition’ in a surprise 6-3 final decision.

The Rikers Debate Project is a non-profit that teaches debate classes and competitive debate skills, including communication, conflict resolution and public citizenship, to people detained on Rikers Island. Since the projects inception in the summer of 2016, the organization has been covered by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and been featured on the Samantha Bee Show.

“Each time I’ve viewed a debate, I’m blown away at how well versed the debaters are on each issue addressed” said Assemblyman David Weprin, Assembly Correction Committee Chair. “Debate teaches individuals how to communicate, helps people resolve conflict, and increases public citizenship. In our correctional facilities, they have shown to be an effective means of programming, reducing the occurrence of conflict and making our facilities safer.”