AmericaSpeaks TheVoiceOfJoyce One man’s crusade for employment and Justice, ends with the passage of California Bill: SB 231, sealing all prison records upon request & non violent felonies, automatically, after 4 years of Parole. Citizens can petition to seal their records, so they can regain their rights to work, get a degree, certificates and vote. The USA, punitively incarcerates 70 million Americans, mostly Black and goes so far as to deny many their right to vote. In Florida, Politicians granted ex felons the right to vote, then took away all classifications, except 3. 1.4 million Floridians were deceived, they thought they were now able to vote. At 5% of the World’s population, 20% of the World’s population is incarcerated. Prison is Big Business. When Alabama received Federal Covid money to be spent on schools, teachers & infrastructure , they chose to build 2 for Profit prisons instead? Does keeping people poor, under educated, unemployed, unable to Vote, make sense to you? Is this humane treatment?

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/sep/14/criminal-records-california-sealing-expunge-jay-jordan

In a country that is home to more than 20% of the world’s prison population but just 5% of the global population, the impact is profound: “It’s not just mass incarceration. We have a system of mass criminalization,” Roberts said. In addition to housing, employment and occupational licenses, records block people from adoption, volunteering, voting and taking care of elderly relatives.

Black Americans are disproportionately affected – more likely to be stopped, arrested, cited, imprisoned, charged with felonies, convicted, handed longer sentences and saddled with records that further deepen inequalities for generations.

That’s post-conviction poverty: folks are subjected to horrible working conditions and predatory industries


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