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reintegration of offenders
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Should convicted ex-convicts be given a second chance? This is a common topic talked about all around the world. There are many of people who’ve made mistakes, particularly when they’re young, and why this shouldn’t be in everyone interests to help them redeem themselves and then get on a straight path. Many who are being released from incarceration fear failure before release to society with only the basic minimum education allowed while incarcerated. According to Wheeler & Patterson (2008) “Problems when reentering communities, including substance abuse; mental illness; HIV and AIDS; lack of education; unemployment; homelessness; legal barriers to receiving public services, such as bans on obtaining public assistance; public housing restrictions and limited transitional housing options” (p.145). However, when ex-convicts are not given an equal chance in employment, to improve themselves, they will usually fall back into the cycle of crime and incarceration. Things like theft and drug abuse are caused as a result of the social, financial and physical effects of poverty or poor financial state.
In cases, the convicts have little to no money saved up but in other cases, the ex-convict is in a good state with money saved up but somehow ended up as a convict, will also end up in poor as they will soon deplete their money due to the lack of income. In either case, by not giving equal chance for ex-convicts in terms of employment, they will end up not having income to improve their financial status. This will force the ex-convicts to find other methods to survive and to support their families. Often, their old ways will lead to returning back into criminal activities as other doors are closed. No matter how tempting, tr...
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...ontributor to the community and society. Being giving a second chance to improve your past mistakes and wrong doing should be something to cherish with. It is a blessing because you have the chances to re-do everything in the right direction. Taking responsibility for your actions and changing for the better. People should take advantage of it just like Malcolm X did when he was giving the second chance. He educated himself in the prison to become a better person. For so many successfully personals they were giving a second chance and corrected their previous mistakes.
I have holes in my knowledge about subject and looking into more sources can widen my view of the subject. Instead of thinking opinionated I should use more fact and view of others in this topic. This will make my argument more efficient and effective to successfully get others to see my point.
Without these men getting to work and becoming productive members of society, they are barred from this opportunity and the economy suffers (Appelbaum, 2015). Devah Pager, who conducted the famous study “Mark of a Criminal Recod,” which unveiled apparent discrimination against ex-offenders in the job market, weighed in on the issue: “Prior to the prison boom, when convictions were restricted to a smaller fraction of the population, it wasn’t great for their rehab potential but it wasn’t having a huge impact… Now such a large fraction of the population is affected that is has really significant implication, not just for those people, but for the labor market as a whole (Appelbaum,
“Many People say that serious crime committers have shown they aren’t trustworthy” (Clegg). After a felon is released from prison, the expectation would be that they would shape up and return to their lives, however most of their lives are completely changed. When a felon is released from prison, they should retain their same rights as a US citizen as well as their right to vote and serve in Jury Duty, because they served their time and cannot be held in double jeopardy, and are valuable assets to the country for work and less homelessness.
According to a pew report “two-in-five inmates nationwide return to jail with in three years of release, often because they face the same poverty, limited prospects and weak support networks that cause them to turn to crime in the first place. There is always another way in our society today, I'm not saying it's impossible to get a job as a ex convict although it’s battle of survival of the fittest in order to get a job as an felon. The author of “Should Convicted Felons Be Given a Second Chance?” did what it took in order to succeed as a convicted felon the jail time make him realize this lifestyle isn't what he desired so he worked until he could make a change he did whatever it took to surpass and overcome his old lifestyle as a young boy. “When people feel guilt about a specific behavior, they experience tension, remorse, regret “ the researchers write.” “Research has shown that this sense of tension and regret typically motivates reparative action-confessing, apologizing, or somehow repairing the damage
Rehabilitation also involves programs in prisons that have the goal of helping offenders return back to society (Goff, 2014, p.20). Prisons have also put in place programs to assist inmates, “the goal of these release programs are to ease the transition of offenders from the institution into the community while simultaneously promoting stable employment after release” (Cullen & Jonson, 2011, p.309). If a person has been in an institution for a long period of time it is often hard to adjust to life outside, which is why these programs are important in the justice
Having a job and a flow of income are essential to easing back into the world after imprisonment. Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow” has studies that found that finding employment after incarceration is more of a priorities to felons than finding or having access to housing. Most employers will have interviewers ask a job candidate about any past convictions, which then lessens the chances of a felon being able to receive that job. Even prior to the interview stage, many former felons may not even make it as far as to being interviewed, as most online and paper job applications ask for one’s criminal history. The inability to find employment after conviction and release can sometimes consequently lead to the felon falling back into a cycle of crime, perhaps in a means of illegally obtaining income, like through the drug
Employment is an important factor for ex-offenders (Rakis 7). They need a stable job to provide income, housing, and basic needs. If an ex-offender has a family to support, that income becomes even more crucial (Pannkuk). Ex-offenders need jobs that are secure, with a reasonable amount of wages and benefits. With the current state of the economy, it is not feasible to live on minimum wage, especially if trying to support a family (Pannkuk). Having a secure job will also help smooth the transition from prison to normal life. Ex-offenders with employment have lower recidivism rates t...
As these men re-enter the workforce they now likely have less skills than when they first entered prison. There are few, if any, programs, which train these men to effectively re-enter society. As jobs continue to move out further and further into the suburbs, these males, who are from the inner city, are left with few living wage employment options. The rates that convicts go back to jail are so high not because these men want to return to a life of crime but since few employment options are available, they tend to utilize their limited skills to get the money they need to survive. If more efforts do not make additional training available to these males that are realistically designed to help them obtain a living wage job, the rates that convicts go back to jail and black male unemployment will continue to increase.
Should felons have the right to vote? Many ex-cons would like to be given the chance to vote but because of their previous infractions they are unable to participate in such activities. When being punished twice for the same crime they are a victim of double jeopardy. Some people might ask why they should be allowed to vote when they have committed a crime against society. Others might say why should we give them a chance to contribute to society. One can wonder if this is just considered unfair punishment or is it
560). It is hard to imagine that a prisoner, who completes their maximum sentence, is released back into the community without any type of supervision. After being told what to do, how to do it, and when to do it for so long, a person is going to have difficulty transitioning back to an independent life. Personal and economic deficits add to the problems of prisoner reentry as well. Siegel (2017) mentions that young men and women with a long history of drug abuse and criminal behavior and who have an antisocial personality with childhood dysfunctions are more likely to fall back into their old criminal habits and end up reincarcerated. Along the same lines, those who are released from prison that do not have a stable family life, for example a good marriage, tend to have a harder time adapting back into the community. Economic problems persist with ex-inmates as well. Ex-inmates will have a harder time finding work because by law, ex-convicts are denied the right to work in certain occupations such as childcare, education, security, nursing, and home health care. More jobs are
Sung, L. G.-e. (2011). Rethinking Corrections: Rehabilitation, Reentry, and Reintegration. Thousand Oaks : SAGE Publications.
If we truly want people convicted of felonies to re-engage with society, become rehabilitated, and feel a part of a broader community, then our state should do everything possible to re-incorporate thee individuals into mainstream society.
Why are formerly incarcerated individuals still being treated as incarcerated individuals instead of normal everyday citizens? Two thirds of released prisoners end up returning to jail within a year to three years. Mainly because they weren’t given the tools or programs to return to society when they were released. They are constantly discriminated against when it comes to obtaining a job whether it be because of selection, transformation, or credentials. This leads to them returning to a life of crime, which they were living before. Not only that, but families have a difficult time when it comes to coping with the stress of supporting these ex-convicts. There should be prisoner reentry programs not only for the former convicts, but the families as well. They carry most of the burden that comes with a loved one returning home from prison. Communities should also be allowed to put programs in place to help out these families as well as those returning, especially considering prisoners are being released just as often as they are being booked. If everyone works together and forms a solid plan, and works to put these programs in place there is no reason that we should have former prisoners falling through the cracks and returning to the system that failed them in the first
Sentences usually have a minimum amount of time a criminal has to serve in jail. When every offender has to be in prison for a certain amount it adds to a numerous amount of incarcerated people at one time, which creates overcrowded prisons. If the law allowed early release of rehabilitated prisoners it would reduce the number of people in prisons. “Advocates say early release targets only low-risk, nonviolent criminals who are already close to the end of their sentences… supporters say, early release based on earned time can give prisoners incentives to participate in educational or work programs, improving their chances of successfully reintegrating into society after prison and lowering recidivism rates”(Early Release For Prisoners). Although the early release for prisoners should only be granted if they in fact have been rehabilitated. Prisons need to focus on helping the prisoners change into productive members of society instead of punishing. Overcrowding and rehabilitation seem to not work well together. It is impossible to ensure that all prisoners receive the help they need when there are so many of them. “Chronic overcrowding is an important reason for why rehabilitation is less effective in prison and jail settings” (Sentencing and Prison Overcrowding). Because rehabilitation does not work very well in prison, there needs to be more centers focusing on helping
...enders get on the right path and reduces the possibility of being a repeat offender. Elizabeth has proved that rehabilitation is effective if programs are available. Studies have shown the decline in recidivism with rehabilitation. Offenders are less likely to renter jail when they have somewhere to live, job, and a positive relationships. I agree with Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, “To put people behind walls and bars and do little or nothing to change them is to win a war but lose a battle. It is wrong. It is expensive. It is stupid” (Schmalleger, 2009). I believe rehabilitation can serve as a new beginning to what the offenders and even society considered an ending.
In closing, would you rather be pestered and bothered, maybe even burglarized because an ex-convict feels like a second-class, poverty stricken citizen? Or would you rather they receive welfare after they have went to apply for jobs but are not considered for them, after they have been disenfranchised, and simply because of their past actions that he or she may be trying to rid themselves of? Choose wisely, because someway and somehow we, those who aren't convicts are directly affected by them.