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| No | 92% | 273 votes | Total: 298 votes | |
| Yes | 8% | 25 votes |
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Add to FavoritesHow inhumane, selfish and stupid to prevent someone a job after doing their time, to pay for the crime they were accused of. If those who has done their time in jail or prison cannot get a job once they are released, we may as well build concentration camps to hold them all. We are only setting them up to go back to prison.
Millions of people have a felony. The word "felony," is used to make a person appear to be a dangerous, unworthy and distrustful person. Thousands of people have felonies for non-violent crimes, not to mention being wrongly convicted of something they never did. There are men in prison on felony convictions for non-payment of child support.
The law locks up these men and some women, for 2 or 3 years for not paying child support, even if they did not have a job at the time. If they had a job, the money would have been garnished from their paychecks. Taxpayers pick up the bill of around $150,000.00 to keep them locked up.
When he/she gets out of prison, he/she has a felony over his/her head, so he/she cannot get a job. He/she is right back where he/she started from, and the cycle continues. The taxpayers lose, the children lose, and the man or woman loses. The only ones getting anything out of all this, are the courts and prison systems.
A mother gets cut off welfare to save taxpayers money. She writes a bad check to feed her children. Now taxpayers not only dish out thousands of dollars to keep her locked up, for a few dollars on the check. Her children are torn from her and placed into foster care. Taxpayers have to also pay for that. Damage is done to her family, while the courts, and prison system rake in profits from the taxpayers. The largest industry in this county is "Prisons." More people in prison, more money for those who run them.
When this mother gets out of prison, she has that life sentence of a "felony," over her head, and cannot get a job because of it. She is right back where she started when she wrote the check. Where is the justice in all this? A person steals from a store to support a drug habit. He needs treatment to get clean. Our government claims we cannot afford treatment centers for these people, but they put them into prison as punishment, and collect millions from taxpayers to keep them locked away, out of sight, out of mind.
These people can never get a normal life with this type of cycle that our laws create. A felony over a persons head, no matter what he or she was accused of, is a life sentence of hopelessness. When the working class scream out, "GET A JOB," they are ignorant of what the system is all about, and how it operates. Getting a job is 'impossible' with a felony label on a person. Even innocent people who had never committed the crime they were convicted of. It is an evil system that we allow.
If all these people who 'paid' their dues to society, according to the law, are punished for life with a felony, this country is no better than Nazi Germany was. Jews and other undesirables were put into concentration camps, and eliminated like worthless trash. A felony is another form of committing 'genocide' against a group of people who paid for their acts, far more than was needed.
Only the poor and oppressed are treated this way. The rich have loop holes to get away with any crimes they commit. The Bible says, "All have sinned and fall short of God's glory." Those who judge, and seek to eliminate others who have done their time, by labeling them felons for life, are simply evil and inhumane.
Learn more about this author, Simonne Liberty.
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Yes
I believe that in some cases, a felony conviction should automatically prevent a person from obtaining employment. In most cases, however, I do not think that a criminal past has to stand in the way of someone being hired - in fact, it is essential that these individuals be able to find gainful employment in order to re-enter and become functioning members of society.
There are some limitations though: I would be leary of hiring a person with a felony conviction for any position that involves working around children, or if my business were located next to a school or daycare. The fact is, this person was tried and held responsible for a serious crime - that is what differentiates a felony from a misdemeanor. If I were the owner of a toy shop for example, I would be nervous about having someone of questionable character in such close proximity with a child. As a mother, I would hope that stores that cater to families would be responsible enough to not employ individuals who had been in prison. This, of course, goes without saying for places like play centers, preschools, and day cares, and also jobs within school systems such as cafeteria workers and custodians. I believe that not only should convicted child molesters be automatically prevented from working there, but all convicted felons.
In other cases, the question of whether to hire a convicted felon should be left up to the company itself. A retail store that deals in expensive merchandise has the right to question the practicality of employee someone with a history of theft. This is where the nature of the crime must be examined. A man or woman who has been convicted of identity theft should not be allowed to operate a cash register where customers would be handing him or her a credit card. It is very easy for salespeople behind the counter to copy this information and use it later. As consumers, we trust that the companies we do business with will not knowingly put us in that kind of financial danger.
I believe that each case should be looked at on an individual basis. A person's past should not have to define their future, and prevent them from living a normal life. Employers need to closely examine not only the facts of the crime, but the potential employee's other past behavior, job history, and activities since the conviction. If it seems that they are genuinely making an effort to reform, they should be given another chance. If there are other charges, felony or not, that triggers a red flag. Society should not be expected to embraced convicted criminals in the workplace, no questions asked.
Learn more about this author, Kat Derrig.
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