Over the past several months, I’ve noticed new civilian staff pushing mounds of paper and guiding needy short-timers through the Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative Program. Out of curiosity, I asked a friendly tobacco-chewing chap (we were outside on break), “What exactly do you do?”
“I’m a job specialist,” he answered. “I help inmates make the transition from prison to society. Through MPRI we help them with their resumes and guide them to various employment opportunities.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell him about my experience bringing tray-liner, Taco Bell application forms into my classroom for an assignment. The students felt it was beneath them. “Besides,” one student said, “it’s a waste of time.”
I countered by saying, “Yeah, you’re right. Without a GED or high school diploma, your chances of working for Taco Bell are slim.” There’s nothing wrong with riling the troops. A good dose of reality never hurt anyone. As long as you know how to de-escalate.
I’m not sure what type of employment this job specialist had in mind for those paroling, and I’m not trying to be a downer, but who wants to hire an ex-con? Not the Michigan Department of Corrections; we stopped doing that years ago.
MPRI has a monumental task ahead of them. My facility spent $11,000 clothing recent parolees—hey, you can’t send them into the world naked! Our warden decided it’s not the Michigan Department of Correction’s responsibility to clothe them when they leave. Without a support system, indigent prisoners will have to remain locked-up—that is, unless MPRI can lend a hand.
Can you imagine starting over with nothing? I certainly can’t.
10 comments:
I must have the disease of denial.
...I start over and over again with nothing all the time.
Maybe I'm trying for some transfinite number that will pull me ahead of the pack.
Listening to too much advice from my late pal Aland Baskin?
"When you give up, that's when you win"?
Maybe I should be locked up too!
Ivan
Ivan, I don't think you need to be locked up at all, you keep giving us out there the reality of life, and I doubt that I will ever understand it.
JR, just wondering if you have been fishing in Southern Florida for the big trophy fish at all?
I would have thought one of the reasons for prison would be rehabilitation. Wouldn't that include giving them help getting back on their feet? I mean, wouldn't that be a step in the right direction to steering them away from re-offending? Just makes sense to me...
P.S. You've been tagged.
Josie
I've been thinking a lot about jail peoples lately. Do they commit crimes believing that there is no way on earth they will be caught, or do they not have the basic understanding of consequences? We watched some prison show the other day and the whole thing baffles me.
A bus ticket and a suit of clothes, no address, no money for food, no place to go, unless paroled to a half way house, a couple of hours spent with a "job specialist"...I wonder JR just what is the recidivism rate in MI?
I feel a certain sense of compassion for the incarcerated as they re-enter the world but they obviously did something to end up behind bars. It's a visious cyclse but you're right -- not too many employers will knowingly hire an ex-con.
JR, Check out Ivan's blog :-)
Jim, I wouldmake the ex's where their bright orange jump suit when they leave prison. Hopefully they would become embarrassed which would be a part of their cleaning up their act. --Bro, Ron
Jim, Oh, by the way, nice clean EX-van you have there. Hopefully, your car doesn't look like that!! --Bro, Ron
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