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It’s Time for an Executive Order to Ban the Box

When I got out of prison 30 years ago, the only job I could get took me right back inside the gates of San Quentin, where I helped inmates through the prison’s law office. What I witnessed 30 years...

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Does America Really Believe in Second Chances?

In America, we punish people for being poor.  From predatory lending, to the criminalization of homelessness, to modern day debtors’ prisons, we make life expensive for individuals and families who are...

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Why TalkPoverty is Hosting Criminal Justice Reform Week

Between 70 million and 100 million Americans have some type of criminal record—that’s nearly one in three of us. Many have only a minor record—a misdemeanor, or even an arrest without a conviction. But...

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Poverty, Incarceration, and Criminal Justice Debt

In today’s economy, overwhelming debt is an unfortunate reality for millions of Americans.  From credit card debt to mortgage debt to student loan debt, Americans increasingly live off of borrowed...

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We Need Fair Chance Hiring of People with Criminal Records

The police shooting of Michael Brown provides yet another reminder of the need to address decades of over-criminalization and under-employment that have punished communities of color.   A timely Center...

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How Juvenile Records Prevent Youth from Escaping Poverty

J.B. came to Community Legal Services of Philadelphia (CLS) at age 21, after he had been working as a cashier at a convenience store for five months making minimum wage. He had performed so well as a...

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Ronald’s Story: ‘People Need Second Chances’

I was arrested in 2004.  I was on the streets with my brother. He was selling drugs, and when the cops came up I said, “Here comes 5-0.” So, they charged me with drugs and possession. And that year I...

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Just Getting a Job is Not as Easy as It Sounds

There is one factor that simultaneously promises to reduce recidivism, save money, and reduce poverty for a significant portion of the United States: employment for formerly incarcerated citizens....

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Why Congress Should Pass the REDEEM Act

At a time of historic polarization in Washington, one issue has garnered strong bipartisan support: criminal justice reform. Exhibit A is the list of strange bedfellows who have recently joined forces...

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New Ruling Highlights Why We Need the REDEEM Act

On May 21, U.S. District Judge John Gleeson ordered the expungement of the 13-year-old federal fraud conviction of “Jane Doe,” a Brooklyn home health aide. His decision received national attention for...

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Prison-Created Poverty

No one likes to talk about the fact that “doing time” leaves the majority of returning citizens worse off than before they were incarcerated. Prior to my imprisonment, I had a very successful...

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Serving Time and Creating a Second Chance Economy

Americans believe in the idea that everyone should get a second chance—a chance to redeem ourselves and make things right. This is a guiding principle behind a “second chance economy”—one that would...

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I went to prison at age 60. Here’s what I learned.

I was released from the Federal Correction Institution, Tallahassee one year ago. I was taken to the Greyhound bus station and given a ticket to head home to New York. For the first time in close to a...

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Criminal Justice Reform Will Fall Short If We Fail to Invest in Civil Legal Aid

In recent weeks, both the House and the Senate have introduced bipartisan legislation that would begin to overhaul our nation’s broken criminal justice system. These bills are nothing short of...

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How My Criminal Record Is Punishing My Whole Family

I am a 32-year-old mother of three living in Philadelphia. My children are 14, 8, and 6, and while I support them on my own, it isn’t easy due to a criminal record I have from almost ten years ago....

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From the Criminal Justice System to the Department of Justice

For the first time in its history, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has designated this week National Reentry Week, observed this year between April 24th and 30th. As part of this designation, Attorney...

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How Expanding Legal Aid Services Supports Reentry and Protects Civil Rights

After nearly 30 years as an employment lawyer, I still remember the first time I spoke with a client who had been turned down for a job because of his criminal record. It was the late 1980s. I remember...

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How Court Debt Erects Permanent Barriers to Reentry

One of the most significant barriers to reentry is the imposition of fines, fees, surcharges, costs, and other monetary penalties (collectively “criminal justice debt”). One-third of California’s...

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How We Can Prepare Incarcerated Parents for Reentry

According to the latest estimates, more than 5 million children in this country have had a parent in prison or jail at some point. In fact, parents represent well over half of the individuals serving...

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Parole Requirements Stack the Odds Against Indigenous People

When Benny Lacayo was released from prison after two and a half years, he had a rough time transitioning. “To try to reconnect, and gain that humanity back, that’s very hard,” he reflected. Reentry was...

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