The need for aftercare services for
prisoners returning to society
I once got a cute postcard from a friend. It had a picture
of a guy in a convoluted position, and it said ‘Keep your eye on the ball, your
shoulder to the grindstone and your hand on the wheel.’ Now try to work in that
position! Cute.
CS Lewis once said “In a sort of ghastly simplicity we
remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect
of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honor and are shocked to find
traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”
Both illustrate the task in front of a newly released
prisoner. He or she is typically given whatever personal possessions they had
when they were first incarcerated, and enough money to buy a bus ticket. They need
to find a place to stay and get something to eat. After that first night, they
need to look for a job, find a way to get a little bit of pocket money, and
check in with their parole officer. Most prisoners are released with just the
clothes on their back, so all the basics are needed – outerwear, underwear,
shoes, and socks not to mention soap, deodorant etc.
Going on job interviews is a challenge, because they have
little or no money for bus fare, no decent clothes, and no driver’s
license. Because of their criminal
record, few employers are willing to take a chance on them. Then there are the ways in which they
interact with other people.
During incarceration, they have been effectively cut off
from the rest of the world. There are no cell phones permitted, and the only
land-line is a shared payphone, and phone calls are ridiculously expensive.
Other means of communication are limited and challenging. As a result, family relationships
are strained. Children are forced to cope without their incarcerated parent,
and are often angry and alienated. So there’s often a pressing desire to
reconnect with loved ones, and to start the process of setting things right.
If that were not enough, a whole new set of social skills
needs to be learned. Crimes that lead to incarceration are the result of a lot
of poor choices, not all of which were made by the one convicted and
incarcerated. Sometimes hanging with the wrong crowd is seen as a better
alternative than sticking around the house where families are dysfunctional;
parents are involved in drugs or alcohol, or where abuse is involved. So they
go out to the streets, and learn social skills street-style. Eventually they realize that those skills are
of no use in “normal” society. Then a new way of living is forced on them by
incarceration. But none of the social skills learned inside are very useful on
the outside, either.
The bottom line is that in order to reenter society, stay
clear of further legal problems, and ultimately to become a productive member
of society the newly released inmate stands at the bottom of a huge mountain.
The task of climbing that mountain is so daunting, that almost nobody can do it
without a lot of help.
Meanwhile, the government wonders why we have such a high
rate of re-incarceration. It’s called
recidivism, and it’s extraordinarily expensive.
If I have a job, support a family and pay my taxes, I am a net gain to
society. But if I’m in prison, it costs taxpayers
over $38,000 a year. So we have a lot of
incentive to actually prepare inmates for life on the outside, then work to
assure that they have a support system that gives them a decent second chance.
Until laws and systems undergo some pretty radical changes
however, most of the support has to come from volunteer organizations,
particularly those that are faith-based.
CrossRoads is one of them, and we are working with others in the
community to try to get it right. If you
or someone you know either has need of re-entry support, or would like to
volunteer to mentor someone who does, please contact us. Let’s all work to make freedom worth having
for everyone.
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