In her book “The New Jim Crow” (2010), Michelle Alexander, a civil rights lawyer and an activist in the civil rights movements, that many people think has long been concluded, argues that the results of prison go well beyond the walls of the facility and can even have a perpetual effect on a person's life. Alexanders exact words on page 142 are “ Once labeled a felon, the badge of inferiority remains with you for the rest of your life, relegating you to a permanent second-class status.” Alexander supports her claim by interviewing people and describing their experiences in prison and their life after prison. She also informs the reader of laws that make it harder for felons to not only get jobs, but also limits their access to housing, and
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, there are currently over 2.2 million individuals serving time in federal and state prison, with 95 percent of those individuals being released and returning to their perspective communities across the nation. Majority of those individuals returning have needs that was either unaddressed while incarcerated or during the reentry process, which will negatively impact their ability to live a crime free productive life while in the community. Once released from prison, inmates are faced with a myriad of challenges such as finding stable housing, maintaining employment, combating substance abuse, and addressing physical and mental health problems. However, with the help of community support, offenders would less likely return back to prison and are
Not even countries known for locking up its citizens, like China, Iran, or Russia come close to the United States’ 700 people living behind bars for every 100,000 people (Kelley & Sterbenz, 2014). Unfortunately, the problem with mass incarceration is not limited to living behind bars. Alexander expertly guides the reader down the rabbit hole of the additional ramifications of being labeled a felon in American society: the complexity of laws that prohibits felons from public assistance, like housing or food stamps, legislation that take away felons’ voting rights, regulations that make it legal for employers to discriminate against felons, and statutes that control felons’ movements and their affiliations. The New Jim Crow further highlights a series of court precedents that make it impractical for defendants to claim the police, the prosecutors, or the justice system is undeniably racist as a defense. Arguably, being a person of color, who is labeled a felon, makes it legal for the rest of society to prevent you from participating in a free society
It's really hard to pick a side on this topic because on one side i don't exactly want to live next to a felon or work next to felon because i would worry about my safety. However, i understand
Fellow American citizens already copiously penalize felons in everyday life; they look down on them in society, restrict them from large amounts of jobs, and allow their past blunders to haunt them. Therefore, felons’ debt to society has not only been paid for by their prison sentence, but it has also been paid for by their tedious lifestyle. This leads to enfranchisement advocates pondering why The United States continues to punish felons and restrict them from the highest esteem of American culture, especially when they may have ended up with their doomed fate through a vacuous mistake. To further support their point that disenfranchisement fosters an overly severe punishment for felons, supporters of felon voting rights point out the fact that, “in 13 states a felony conviction can result in disenfranchisement, generally for life, even after an offender has completed his or her sentence” (Mauer 3). Champions of felon voting rights disagree with the continual reprimanding of felons after their sentence, as it exceeds their obligations to
Felon Disenfranchisement has emerged as popular and topic in recent political agendas. Felon Disenfranchisement is defined as, “The removing of a felon’s civil liberties while incarcerated and/or past their prison sentence” (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2016). Generally, disenfranchisement is seen as a retributive form of punishment. Arguably, the rights that are removed from felons during disenfranchisement are seen as essential to the American Identity. Supporters argue that people that break the law should not partake in the process of it and argue that the potential loss of these basic American civil liberties can provide deterrence.
Felon Rights: Many people take voting for granted; many will argue that voting is a privilege not a right, as this is true among many counties. Here in the United States everyone at the age of eighteen gains their right to vote. Right now roughly 4 Million Americans will not be allowed to Vote in the United States. These people are felons that have served their debt to society.
The political debate for and against felon disenfranchisement has compelling arguments on both sides. In the US, over 6 million felons are barred from voting due to laws that prevent felons with a sentence to vote (Chung). The number of imprisoned has been growing over the past 40 years, as the increasing number of imprisoned felons is directly correlated with an increasing number of disenfranchised felons. However, a more jarring statistic reveals that most disenfranchised felons in the United States are of a racial or ethnic minority. Based on information from the 2010 US Census Bureau, about 36 percent of disenfranchised felons are African American.
A finding from a study done by the Bureau of Justice Statistics shows that 67.8 percent of ex-convicts were rearrested. Two-thirds of them spent their time in prison waiting for the release, only to go back into that dirty old cell again. Why don’t they try to get a real job, earn their own living and cherish the second chance we grant them. Let’s step down from the moral high ground for a second. Often released prisoners lack the skills and knowledge to keep up with the pace of society.
When people get out of prison they are afraid of going back. They don't have a reason to change. Most people don't have a way of even getting a job once there out as stated here, ”I work in a medium security prison in North Carolina that serves young men ages 18 to 25. There is one segment of our population that no program addresses. This is the group that will probably never be able to get a GED, and therefore they do not qualify for many of the programs designed to help with job
Housing becomes a struggle if you have a criminal record, landlord will tend to not rent to you. Landlords are often charged less fees to not rent to people with a criminal record. This will force addicts to return to communities that have higher drug and crime rates. It’s almost impossible for addicts to stay sober and away from a life of crime when forced back into that environment. It seems that we set addicts up for failure when we give them treatment and turn around and send them back into the situation that got them to begin
Life after incarceration, here today gone tomorrow. 95% of adults sentenced to prison will return to our communities, and reentry will be their first step back into society. Imagine have a thousand questions flooding one’s mind all at once. Where will I live, how will I survive, and contribute to the family, while maintaining to the stipulations of one’s parole/ probation, without risking freedom. The number one goal for those newly released back into society by way of the reentry program is to never return to the inside of a prison cell.
Without a serious punishment, these people are more likely to repeat their crimes. Heather Kramer and Otis Newton, who write for the Lakeside Publishing Group, believe that disenfranchisement is a necessary measure against convicted felons, as these criminals have failed to comply with the very document that provides them with many freedoms. This article hopes to attract the attention of the general
The current system that incarcerates people over and over is unsustainable and does not lower the crime rate nor encourage prisoner reformation. When non-violent, first time offenders are incarcerated alongside violent repeat offenders, their chance of recidivating can be drastically altered by their experience in prison. Alternative sentencing for non-violent drug offenders could alleviate this problem, but many current laws hinder many possible solutions. Recently lawmakers have made attempts to lower the recidivism rates in America, for example the Second Chance Act helps aid prisoners returning into society after incarceration. The act allows states to appropriate money to communities to help provide services such as education, drug treatment programs, mental health programs, job corps services, and others to aid in offenders returning to society after incarceration (Conyers, 2013).
Specific Purpose Statement: To invite my audience to see the different viewpoints involved with life after prison in the U.S. Thesis: Those who were once in incarceration live with the title of being a former convict the rest of their life. I wish to explore their lives after incarceration and I hope to find the differing opinions some of you may have on those that have re-joined our community. Pattern of Organization: Multiple Perspective Pattern Introduction [Attention-Getter] How would you feel knowing you were standing behind a convict in line at a grocery store?
