NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
Mistakes happen. But there are those moments when those mistakes follow you for the rest of your life. For felons, that dark cloud rarely goes away. A bad judgment call for individuals has a lasting effect no matter where you go or how much time has passed. While there are repeat felons who just love trouble, what about the people who just had a moment of weakness? The ones who took a left when they should have taken a right? It’s tough out here for everyone, but try having a record and then let’s sit and debate about the world’s issues.
There is no secret that the American Justice System is flawed, especially when it comes to felons. In some eyes, it’s used to tear and hold down the African American race. I get how that can be the perception, but the truth is, there are more than just brown skin men and women in prison. But let’s get back to the topic at hand. Felons, and how do they survive when they are set up to fail even after paying their debt to society?
Who Will Hire Felons?
This is how the system works. Forget what websites and books tell you regarding felons entering back into the real world. This is coming from a person who went through this firsthand and someone who is still going through this years later. You commit a crime, get sentenced to prison, and more than likely with a felony. You do your time, get released back into the world, and are forced to start over. But it’s what they don’t tell you that makes this such a crappy trade-off.
Rehabilitated is the word that’s thrown around. That’s what they say the prison system is supposed to do. Its design is to rehabilitate you which you’re not supposed to want to return. So, let’s say that’s your game plan, once you’re released, is to change your life. Not so damn fast.
What they don’t tell you is that, even after doing time for the crime, you still have to walk around with the felony charge on your record. Lawyers will tell you to get it expunged but that costs money. And truth be told, why should we have to get it expunged if I paid my debt to society? Isn’t that what you sent me to prison for? I did the crime, did the time, and I’m still being punished? For those sitting back and wondering why that is so important, let me explain and break it down as easily as I can.
You get released and you begin the search for a job. On the application, they ask, have you ever been convicted of a crime or felony? Moment of truth time. What do you do? While jobs will say they do not discriminate against criminals, the truth is, they do. That’s why they ask the question. In the same way, jobs ask for your race and gender ahead of time. They get to decide who they want to hire from behind their desk without seeing your face or hearing your voice.
Now, let’s say you have been out of prison for at least 10 years and have not been in any trouble since then. Most jobs will do a background check that goes back 10 years or so and maybe some even 5 years. However, what do you put on that application? If you know they go back 10 years, do you check the box that says no?
For some, this seems easy to answer but to those of us who have been incarcerated, we know our options. We’re basically gambling with not only our but our family’s well-being. They say lying on an application is bad but what are we supposed to do? The peanut gallery will say “you should have never got in trouble.” Well, no s***. We made our mistake but according to the state, we also paid our debt to society so why are we still living as if we never paid our debt?
In most states now, you can’t even rent an apartment with a felony on your record. So, because someone made a mistake, they can’t even get housing in this country? What kind of crap is that? All someone will tell you is that you should get it expunged. No, the state should have expunged the record on the day of your release. Having a felony on your record in the real world is the same as still being in prison.
And here is a fun fact that’s really not too funny. When released, your prison number is valued for 8 years. What that means is, they expect you to come back. You see how this is designed to keep people down? It doesn’t matter what color you are. The rules are stacked against those. You do the crime, do the time, and yet, you can’t have a normal life.
