Since 1980, the incarceration of women in Wisconsin has increased by 897%, according to Marianne Oleson, organizer of the Fox Valley area chapter of ExPO, Ex-incarcerated Persons Organizing. Oleson is one of many fighting the attempts in the Wisconsin legislature to try to make it easier to terminate parental rights of incarcerated individuals and fighting the “Jim Crow era” Wisconsin laws taking away voting rights of felons, even after they have served their prison time. Having served her sentence, Oleson herself cannot vote until 2040.
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