Can We Talk 2

Ex-Offenders

         Today I attended a discussion panel for female ex-offenders and community members to discuss acclimating back into society. At times it was tearful. At times you felt surrounded by anger. But mostly, I felt there was genuine concern for rehabilitation and allowing these women who don't want to return to their old ways, but make a living for themselves and their families.

         A number of these women are struggling to finish college or to go to seminary to become ministers. They are very different from each other, some with close families, some alone in the world. One woman told about her alcoholic mother putting her in the foster care program at age 11; she said she felt like she had been incarcerated her whole life. Most had been in for 3 to 20 years.

         Can you imagine coming out of a protected, severely regulated environment for a decade or more and seeing how much the world has changed? Even job hunting has changed. You can't pound the pavement any longer. In person applications are not taken. Styles of clothing and hair change. They haven't kept up. Their closets, if they still have access to them, aren't adequate. Their computer skills aren't up to date. The world kept moving on, but they were on hold, suspended in time.

         I know we hear about the computer access and the white collar prisons. Those are for men. And not in my state. My state emphasizes punishment, not rehabilitation. Recidivism is high. Fortunately, the women meeting with us today are determined to turn their lives around. A few admitted they couldn't stay around their old friends or even family any longer. They had to get away from the toxic environment. One woman had worked for almost two years, getting good reviews and a promotion, until a new boss ran police checks on all employees. She was fired on the spot, no severance pay, on the day she was to leave on her first vacation.

         So there are two main issues: preparing these women for the real world before they get out (budgeting, job hunting, keyboarding, interviewing, availability of resources like counseling) and after they get out (finding a safe place to live, transportation to get started, a job, finding a support group). Parole officers only check for drugs and violations and traveling.

         Another issue is the fact that all chain stores and big places like hospitals do not hire felons. Period. How do you get smaller or local employers to get beyond the fear of felons? How can they be taught to discern between hardened criminals and those who are reformed? How can the community help felons set up their own businesses, whether painting (they have to be bonded) or copy writing or selling cosmetics? We sort of left off with a lot of unanswered questions.

         There are thousands of people in any state in the prison system. Most will be released (all but death row) and they will be back in our communities. What will we do with them?