5/11/16 A person said to have “paid their debt to society” may call to mind a person newly-released from prison. For many Americans, however, their release from prison is only the start of further payment, in the form of missed opportunities to housing, jobs to support themselves and their families, education and training, and more. Since the institution of the Reentry Policy Council in 2001, many worthy programs have sought to make it easier for those newly released to regain their place in our society.
According to data published on the Council of State Governments Justice Center website, about 95 percent of those released from prison will be returned to the community, and about half those released from state custody have children 9 or younger. Classifying that person a “felon” or “convict” can be unnecessarily damaging to them both personally and practically, and their families as well.
Yesterday the US Department of Education advised colleges and universities nationwide to pursue alternatives to criminal history inquiries on admissions applications, which shut millions of citizens out of a chance to pursue better lives for themselves and their families.
Last month, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe restored voting rights to those who have served their prison time and completed parole or probation, and ending the previous policy which had stripped those rights for life.
Earlier in April the US Department of Housing and Urban Development issued guidelines prohibiting housing providers from blanket discrimination against people for criminal arrests or convictions (see our related blog post here). The guidelines prohibit use of mere arrest to justify the exclusion, and describe the requirement of a tailored policy which evaluates such things as the type of crime, remoteness of the crime, and whether the convicted conduct would indicate a real risk to persons and property, such as to justify any exclusion.
Last year, the Department of Education instituted initiatives such as the Second Chance Pell Pilot program and $8 million dollars in Adult Reentry Education Grants to assist those who have been incarcerated to achieve educational betterment and success in their reintroduction.
Successful reentry benefits everyone by reducing re-offending and associated correctional costs, but also to improve housing, employment, education, child welfare, public health both mental and physical, and more. While it could not be said that every person released from prison is motivated to better themselves and their lives, for their sakes, their children’s sakes, and for the sake of the community as a whole, those that do should be given every opportunity to try.
For a persuasive argument addressing the stigma associated with the words “felon” and convict”, see the New York Times editorial below:
Or, for a personal look at one Arizonans continuing struggle to reestablish herself, almost 10 years after her release from custody, see the PBS Cronkite News article below:
https://cronkitenews.azpbs.org/2016/05/09/arizona-felons-have-steep-path-to-restore-voting-rights/
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