If this headline caught your eye, you need to read: “The Racist Origins of Felon Disenfranchisement,” a recentĀ New York Times editorial by Brent Staples. It is a pointed and powerful piece by a great journalist. It also features an American Journal of Sociology article by Profs. Chris Uggen and Jeff Manza (NYU) and former Minnesota honors undergraduate, Angela Behrens.