Philadelphia Reintegration Services for Ex-Offenders (R.I.S.E.) The Umbrella of Cronyism
By Thomas Ford
July 26, 2013
Just received this official post (see below) from the City of Philadelphia website for R.I.S.E.
What's troubling is the folks that uploaded this propaganda failed to even proof-read their message. And, RISE has never truly acted as an inclusive "umbrella organization for local ex-offender re-entry programs and initiatives" mainly because many of RISE's staff is unqualified and ill-equipped to accept this position of leadership.
For example:
William Hart, hired as the Executive Director of RISE in 2011, was a crony appointment by Mayor Michael Nutter. Before coming to RISE, Hart was Director of Community Employment at Temple University and had less experience working with ex-offenders than Wallace Custis, who was already employed at RISE and had extensive experience working with "ex-offenders" during his Staffing Specialist tenure at CareerLink's Workforce Development Corp. Temple University has never been a beacon of hope in terms of providing services or hiring folks with a criminal history from Philadelphia's neighborhoods.
Not to be outdone by Mayor Nutter's cronyism, Hart recently hired RISE's Case Management Supervisor who has less college credentialed experience than the case managers she was hired to supervise. According to a member of RISE's management team, the recently hired case management supervisor's basic writing ability and understanding of data collection applications is virtually non-existent.
Yea, this is the "umbrella" Philadelphia's grassroots reentry programs must look to for leadership...So sad but so true.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Welcome To R.I.S.E.
Transitioning the formerly incarcerated back into the community
The Mayor’s Office of Re-Integration Services for Ex-offenders (RISE) is the lead agency in the City for the management of reintegration services for the formerly incarcerated back into society. At RISE we know that people who receive the skills and training and education necessary to complete in the formal economy are far less likely to participate in criminal activity.
The Mayor’s Office of Re-Integration Services for Ex-offenders (RISE) mission is to:
Improve public safety and the re-entry process for the formerly incarcerated enabling them to become responsible and productive Philadelphians by addressing barriers that impede their fair chance for success.
RISE has established the following goals:
◾To act as an umbrella organization for local ex-offender re-entry programs and initiatives.
◾Establish a strong network of organizations to promote community-wide collaboration.
◾Assist in setting standards for organizations providing services to the formerly incarcerated.
◾Act as a clearing house of information and conduit for funding opportunities.
◾To provide training for both professionals and volunteers and assist with program development.
RETURNING CITIZENS MANIFESTO... The REVOLUTIONARY Voice Of Convicted Citizens Will Not Be Silenced...
Friday, July 26, 2013
New Evidence Suggests the Black Teens Accused of Shooting White Baby Were NOT Involved!
By Micah Naziri and Stephanie Slifer
J
During the height of the Zimmerman trial, when media attention was focused heavily on Stand Your Ground Laws and the question of whether or not a white man would be found not guilty of killing an unarmed African-American teenager, the shooting death of 13 month old Georgia infant Antonio Santiago, also made national media headlines. After the mother, Sherry West, told police that her baby was killed by two black teenagers, the right-wing went crazy with this story. Meme’s about the killing could be found on every social media web-site, public page and in every group where the Trayvon Martin story was discussed. Most of these meme’s showed photos of the infant side by side with one of two accused African-American teenagers.
For months, right wingers have leveled accusations of reverse racism against the President, the Department of Justice and even the media, which did not touch the Trayvon Martin case until public outcry was so widespread that the media could not ignore the protests, rallies and celebrity calls for an arrest to be made. Never mind the fact that these youths were arrested immediately, as soon as they were fingered for the crime, rather than 45 days later. Never mind the fact that they never confessed to the killing as George Zimmerman did. Never mind the fact that unless the following – breaking – evidence is spread far and wide to demand a fair trial for these young men, they will almost certainly be convicted, in spite of all of the damning evidence that implicates the parents in the killing (as you will see).
In spite of the social media “outrage” and the right-wing media narrative, however, the Baby Santiago case only illustrates just how prevalent racism really is in the United States. Just days after Sherry West told police her 13 month old was shot and killed by two black teens, West’s 21 year old daughter went to police to tell them that she suspected her mother may have killed her infant brother.
Ashley Glassey told CBS News in March, that her mother has serious mental health issues. These include a diagnosis of bi-polar with accompanying schizophrenic tendencies. West also talked with the media about how she was removed from her mother’s care at the age of 8, because of abuse and neglect in the home.
Immediately after the shooting, Glassey said West began asking questions about how long it would take her to collect the insurance money. West’s daughter also told both media and police that her mother made conflicting statements to her, regarding the child’s death - including different stories about who was shot first. West’s inconsistencies and suspicious behavior caused her own daughter to tell police and reporters that she suspected her mother was not telling the truth about how the infant was killed. CBS News reported several days later that police had not followed up with Glassey, nor had they taken her statement. A follow-up call by the press to the police, was never returned.
In fact, both the father and mother of baby Santiago, had gunshot residue on them the day their son was killed, according to the state’s forensic report obtained by CBS affiliate WTEV.
While the fact that Sherry West, the baby’s mother, was also shot during her son’s killing could explain why residue was found on her, it is unclear how or why the baby’s father, Louis Santiago, would have been exposed to gunshot residue.
A conclusion from the state forensic report says, “This supports the possibility that [Louis Santiago] discharged a firearm, was in close proximity to a firearm upon discharge, or came into contact with an item whose surface bears GSR [gunshot residue].”
According to the station, Louis Santiago is currently in jail on charges of aggravated stalking. An arrest warrant from June 6 reportedly says Santiago was stalking Sherry West, in violation of police orders. He was reportedly convicted of the same charges in another case from 2009.
West claims Santiago “went nuts” in the months following their son’s murder and violated a restraining order, according to the station.
“He was throwing things through the window and terrorizing me, saying that I killed my baby and it should have been me,” West told the station.
West claims that she was walking her baby by herself when two teens, De’Marquise Elkins and Dominique Lang, tried to rob her at gunpoint on a Brunswick sidewalk. The teens allegedly shot her in the leg and baby Antonio in the head. Both are behind bars on charges of murder and are scheduled to stand trial next month.
On July 16th this new evidence was released to the public that implicates the parents involvement in the child’s death. Police tests immediately following the shooting revealed gun powder on the hands of both Sherry West and the baby’s father, Louis Santiago. Santiago claimed that he was nowhere near the scene of the shooting. This evidence too, was withheld for months, until the defense attorney in the case demanded that it be released in mid July.
When we look at the Zimmerman case and the Baby Santiago case side by side, what we see is how racism plays out in the United States. When a white man openly admitted to shooting and killing an unarmed black teenager, the public immediately jumped to his defense. On the other hand, when two black teenagers were accused of shooting and killing a white child, the public immediately cried out for their executions. The horrifying tale of an infant murdered in cold blood by heartless black youths was readily accepted by vast numbers of Zimmerman’s supporters.
Evidence in the Baby Santiago case seems to point more and more toward the fact that the two black youth accused of this shooting are innocent of the crime they’ve been blamed for. Yet their pictures have been plastered all over social media, and they’ve been labeled as “baby killers” – a favorite phrase of the right-wing since the day of the shooting. Can we hope that there will be a fair trial for these youth? Can we hope that our justice system will not continue to convict the innocent, while allowing the guilty to go free? Can we hope that the media will report fairly and accurately on this case? Can we hope that the Georgia court system will be fairer and more just than the one in Florida?
And what of Sherry West? If it turns out that a southern white women did in fact kill her own infant in order to collect some insurance money, will American’s show the same level of vehemence they did when they believed it was two black teens who killed Antonio Santiago? Will they still cry out for execution, or will they see the case differently, if the killer turns out to be middle-aged, white and female, rather than young, black and male?
And then there is the question of the jurors. Will there be another jury of all white women, women who have to choose between two scenarios; Did a soft-spoken white, southern woman (whom they surely can identify with) actually shoot her own infant – or the alternative, did two black hoodlum gangsters try to rob her, killing her baby in the process? Can such a jury be found in Georgia that is able to set aside their underlying stereotypes about women, about blacks, about society and of course, about themselves, to listen to facts, examine evidence and come to a just decision?
Racism is a threat to every American. The Baby Santiago case may prove that it’s not just the African-American population or the Latino population or the Muslim population, that suffers the consequences. If something does not change, murderers will continue to go free, while innocent people’s lives are destroyed. If our underlying belief system continues to reinforce the idea that the black person is always the guilty party, there’s little to stop people like Sherry West and George Zimmerman, from committing murders of teenagers and even toddlers of any color, having full confidence that as long as they implicate a black person, no-one will even question their innocence.
By Micah Naziri and Stephanie Slifer
J
For months, right wingers have leveled accusations of reverse racism against the President, the Department of Justice and even the media, which did not touch the Trayvon Martin case until public outcry was so widespread that the media could not ignore the protests, rallies and celebrity calls for an arrest to be made. Never mind the fact that these youths were arrested immediately, as soon as they were fingered for the crime, rather than 45 days later. Never mind the fact that they never confessed to the killing as George Zimmerman did. Never mind the fact that unless the following – breaking – evidence is spread far and wide to demand a fair trial for these young men, they will almost certainly be convicted, in spite of all of the damning evidence that implicates the parents in the killing (as you will see).
In spite of the social media “outrage” and the right-wing media narrative, however, the Baby Santiago case only illustrates just how prevalent racism really is in the United States. Just days after Sherry West told police her 13 month old was shot and killed by two black teens, West’s 21 year old daughter went to police to tell them that she suspected her mother may have killed her infant brother.
Ashley Glassey told CBS News in March, that her mother has serious mental health issues. These include a diagnosis of bi-polar with accompanying schizophrenic tendencies. West also talked with the media about how she was removed from her mother’s care at the age of 8, because of abuse and neglect in the home.
Immediately after the shooting, Glassey said West began asking questions about how long it would take her to collect the insurance money. West’s daughter also told both media and police that her mother made conflicting statements to her, regarding the child’s death - including different stories about who was shot first. West’s inconsistencies and suspicious behavior caused her own daughter to tell police and reporters that she suspected her mother was not telling the truth about how the infant was killed. CBS News reported several days later that police had not followed up with Glassey, nor had they taken her statement. A follow-up call by the press to the police, was never returned.
In fact, both the father and mother of baby Santiago, had gunshot residue on them the day their son was killed, according to the state’s forensic report obtained by CBS affiliate WTEV.
While the fact that Sherry West, the baby’s mother, was also shot during her son’s killing could explain why residue was found on her, it is unclear how or why the baby’s father, Louis Santiago, would have been exposed to gunshot residue.
A conclusion from the state forensic report says, “This supports the possibility that [Louis Santiago] discharged a firearm, was in close proximity to a firearm upon discharge, or came into contact with an item whose surface bears GSR [gunshot residue].”
According to the station, Louis Santiago is currently in jail on charges of aggravated stalking. An arrest warrant from June 6 reportedly says Santiago was stalking Sherry West, in violation of police orders. He was reportedly convicted of the same charges in another case from 2009.
West claims Santiago “went nuts” in the months following their son’s murder and violated a restraining order, according to the station.
“He was throwing things through the window and terrorizing me, saying that I killed my baby and it should have been me,” West told the station.
West claims that she was walking her baby by herself when two teens, De’Marquise Elkins and Dominique Lang, tried to rob her at gunpoint on a Brunswick sidewalk. The teens allegedly shot her in the leg and baby Antonio in the head. Both are behind bars on charges of murder and are scheduled to stand trial next month.
On July 16th this new evidence was released to the public that implicates the parents involvement in the child’s death. Police tests immediately following the shooting revealed gun powder on the hands of both Sherry West and the baby’s father, Louis Santiago. Santiago claimed that he was nowhere near the scene of the shooting. This evidence too, was withheld for months, until the defense attorney in the case demanded that it be released in mid July.
When we look at the Zimmerman case and the Baby Santiago case side by side, what we see is how racism plays out in the United States. When a white man openly admitted to shooting and killing an unarmed black teenager, the public immediately jumped to his defense. On the other hand, when two black teenagers were accused of shooting and killing a white child, the public immediately cried out for their executions. The horrifying tale of an infant murdered in cold blood by heartless black youths was readily accepted by vast numbers of Zimmerman’s supporters.
Evidence in the Baby Santiago case seems to point more and more toward the fact that the two black youth accused of this shooting are innocent of the crime they’ve been blamed for. Yet their pictures have been plastered all over social media, and they’ve been labeled as “baby killers” – a favorite phrase of the right-wing since the day of the shooting. Can we hope that there will be a fair trial for these youth? Can we hope that our justice system will not continue to convict the innocent, while allowing the guilty to go free? Can we hope that the media will report fairly and accurately on this case? Can we hope that the Georgia court system will be fairer and more just than the one in Florida?
And what of Sherry West? If it turns out that a southern white women did in fact kill her own infant in order to collect some insurance money, will American’s show the same level of vehemence they did when they believed it was two black teens who killed Antonio Santiago? Will they still cry out for execution, or will they see the case differently, if the killer turns out to be middle-aged, white and female, rather than young, black and male?
And then there is the question of the jurors. Will there be another jury of all white women, women who have to choose between two scenarios; Did a soft-spoken white, southern woman (whom they surely can identify with) actually shoot her own infant – or the alternative, did two black hoodlum gangsters try to rob her, killing her baby in the process? Can such a jury be found in Georgia that is able to set aside their underlying stereotypes about women, about blacks, about society and of course, about themselves, to listen to facts, examine evidence and come to a just decision?
Racism is a threat to every American. The Baby Santiago case may prove that it’s not just the African-American population or the Latino population or the Muslim population, that suffers the consequences. If something does not change, murderers will continue to go free, while innocent people’s lives are destroyed. If our underlying belief system continues to reinforce the idea that the black person is always the guilty party, there’s little to stop people like Sherry West and George Zimmerman, from committing murders of teenagers and even toddlers of any color, having full confidence that as long as they implicate a black person, no-one will even question their innocence.
Saturday, July 20, 2013
The R.I.S.E. and Fall of Serious Reentry in Philadelphia
By Thomas Ford
July 20, 2013
July 20, 2013
The rescheduling of Philadelphia's Job Fair for Ex-Offenders is now being billed as an "Ex-Offender Expo" hosted by RISE (Philadelphia Mayors of Reintegration Services for Ex-Offenders). Returning Citizens seeking employment, mark your calendar for Tuesday, July 30, 2013 @8:30am. The event will take place at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Enter on Broad Street, Broad St & Race St, Philadelphia PA 19107...
YOU MUST PRE-REGISTER TO ATTEND THIS FUNCTION
The City of Philadelphia shut down a career fair for ex-offenders on May 17, 2013 after close to 5,000 returning citizens showed up dressed to impress résumés in hand... Eyewitness accounts back in May reported, "It was a madhouse, unorganized, just mass confusion," an attendee said. "There was no organization... we got by the door and that was when they said 'we're shutting it down,'" another attendee told NBC10 Philadelphia.
As reported in the Returning Citizens Manifesto blog on June 28, 2013, RISE was planning to shift the focus from jobs to "opportunities” according to Mr. Hart, the Director of RISE. This shift from jobs has translated into literacy and education, legal services, interview preparation, explaining your criminal record and expungement/pardons.
“It’s going to be an employer informational, resource and expungement clinic,” Mr. Hart told CBS reporter Cherri Gregg. “We’re going to also have the Mayor’s Commission on Literacy, we’re going to have probation and parole, [and] we’re going to have Community Legal Services” says Hart.
This is truly a travesty because the majority of folks that will be on hand later this month are JOB READY and they do not need or want to be preyed upon by self-serving reentry bandits. A large number of returning citizens have already participated in a myriad of job readiness or re-training programs; they already have a high school diploma/GED and many have post-secondary degrees. By the way, wouldn’t it be better for folks to be employed BEFORE they seek relief from the state in terms of expungements or pardons? Just saying...
RISE writes on their site that up to 100 employers will be on hand at this expo. According to Mr. Hart back in May, the previous event had less than 10 employers on hand. So, we are to believe, RISE miraculously located 90 additional employers willing to hire folks with a criminal history; the “up to 100” leaves a lot of fudge room. We will remain cautiously optimistic about what this forum will look like on the 30th of July. We hope the pressure EXIT-US has applied to RISE in previous postings will produce some successful outcomes for our constituency...
Read below for the official details from RISE...http://expo.phila.gov/
PHILADELPHIA EX-OFFENDER EXPO!!!!
click here for PRE-REGISTRATION IS MANDATORY!!!
DATE: Tuesday, July 30, 2013
TIME: 8:30 AM - 3:00 PM
LOCATION: Pennsylvania Convention Center
Enter on Broad Street, Broad St & Race St, Philadelphia, PA 19107
DESCRIPTION
The Mayor’s Office of Re-Integration Services for Ex-Offenders (R.I.S.E.) is hosting the Ex-Offender Expo on July 30, 2013.
The Expo will feature more than 100 service providers and up to 100 employers, as well as workshops and resources, to help returning citizens search for employment, prepare for interviews, and develop the skills necessary to be successful on the pathway to self-sufficiency.
IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF SERVICE TO ALL ATTENDEES, INDIVIDUALS WHO DO NOT REGISTER WILL NOT BE ADMITTED TO THE EXPO.
SCHEDULE
•8:30am: Doors Open
•8:30am - 10:00am: Sign-in
•10:00am - 10:30am: Keynote Delivered by Everett Gillison, Mayor's Chief of Staff and Councilman Curtis Jones, Chairman of the Public Safety Committee
•3:00pm: Event Ends
WORKSHOPS
Literacy and Education Workshop
In today’s economy, education is the key to employment. As technology progresses, changes in GED testing are fast approaching. With our interactive workshop, people who want to advance their careers or find employment can find all of the information necessary for classes and testing from various providers across Philadelphia.
Legal Services Workshop
This workshop will provide a general discussion of legal issues ranging from court costs to child support, and is designed to help returning citizens navigate their way through the often-complex legal system. Angus Love, an attorney who specializes in ex-offender issues, will be among the panelists.
Interview Preparation Workshop
A great interview is one of the most important steps to finding employment. This workshop will feature a mock-interview process with top HR professionals and career services experts.
Explaining Your Criminal Record/Ban the Box Workshop
Explaining a criminal history to potential employers can often be difficult and unnerving. The ‘Ban the Box’ Legislation, which makes this easier, will be explained by Rue Landau from the City’s Commission on Human Relations. There will also be a focus on finding the best ways to tell employers about this history.
Expungement/Pardon Workshop
In Pennsylvania, each arrest creates a publicly available record that can be sold and shared regardless of the arrest’s final disposition, including arrests not leading to conviction, acquittals, or not guilty verdicts. Featuring the ‘Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity’ (PLSE) and Wayne Jacobs of ‘Ex-Offenders for Community Empowerment,’ the workshop will explain ways to explore record expungement and the Pennsylvania pardon process.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Support Network for Returning Citizens; 4-25-13 Meet-the-Candidate Forum
The Support Network for Returning Citizens' vision is one where returning citizens are at the center of progressive public dialogue, facilitating the implementation of fair and just legislation, and nurturing humane and sensible public safety initiatives. SN4RC envisions a new dawn for humanity where our differences, nationalities and backgrounds are embraced and are essential for nation building. We build on the shoulders of the likes of Nelson Mandela, the Nation of Australia, Malcolm X and others who have contributed to the development of humanity.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
NIGGA PLEASE!!
By Thomas Ford
July 14, 2013
Boy, I stepped away from my computer for a few to watch the commentary following the Trayvon Martin verdict; and now that I'm back online most of what I've read is foul language being tossed back and forth between folks that know and love one another. Damn, facebook friends are going at it tooth and nail trying to force folks into agreeing with their opinions.
And aint that what we do??
We cuss each other out when the judicial system, employers or legislators do us wrong. All kinds of heated energy disputing the "uniform" Trayvon was wearing when he was murdered. Next thing folks will be saying is that women get raped because of what they wear. Oh, that's right, folks already say that bullshyt!! He had a afro, his pants were sagging, he looked like the guy on T.V. who did this or did that.
My response to all that chatter is...NIGGA PLEASE!!!
Chill with trying to justify why amerikkka, especially in NRA headquarters Florida, is willing to kill a Blaq man, woman or child. It's all been documented and those who fear the browning of this country or fear a Blaq planet will continue to kill us as long as we stay distracted on dumb ass shyt.
I find it real interesting the folks screaming the loudest about this injustice are the same folks who don't vote when it comes time to choose a D. A., judge or city controller. These are the same folks getting high with their kids, letting their sons hide guns in their house and accept blood money from their kids when the rent is due. These are the same folks that make sure their kids have the latest I phone, most expensive heels or sneaks, pay for the most expensive weave, nails looking spectacle and little Hakim or Tawanda aint going to school and can't read a lick.
Okay, now your Blaq ass wants to talk about "race"!!
What was your conversation yesterday when the kid down the street got his head blown off by the kid around the corner? Was it about lighting a candle, saying a prayer or singing a hymn...or was it about PLANNING AND IMPLENENTING a viable strategy to transform our current and future circumstances in our own neighborhood??
NIGGA PLEASE!!
By Thomas Ford
July 14, 2013
Boy, I stepped away from my computer for a few to watch the commentary following the Trayvon Martin verdict; and now that I'm back online most of what I've read is foul language being tossed back and forth between folks that know and love one another. Damn, facebook friends are going at it tooth and nail trying to force folks into agreeing with their opinions.
We cuss each other out when the judicial system, employers or legislators do us wrong. All kinds of heated energy disputing the "uniform" Trayvon was wearing when he was murdered. Next thing folks will be saying is that women get raped because of what they wear. Oh, that's right, folks already say that bullshyt!! He had a afro, his pants were sagging, he looked like the guy on T.V. who did this or did that.
My response to all that chatter is...NIGGA PLEASE!!!
Chill with trying to justify why amerikkka, especially in NRA headquarters Florida, is willing to kill a Blaq man, woman or child. It's all been documented and those who fear the browning of this country or fear a Blaq planet will continue to kill us as long as we stay distracted on dumb ass shyt.
I find it real interesting the folks screaming the loudest about this injustice are the same folks who don't vote when it comes time to choose a D. A., judge or city controller. These are the same folks getting high with their kids, letting their sons hide guns in their house and accept blood money from their kids when the rent is due. These are the same folks that make sure their kids have the latest I phone, most expensive heels or sneaks, pay for the most expensive weave, nails looking spectacle and little Hakim or Tawanda aint going to school and can't read a lick.
Okay, now your Blaq ass wants to talk about "race"!!
What was your conversation yesterday when the kid down the street got his head blown off by the kid around the corner? Was it about lighting a candle, saying a prayer or singing a hymn...or was it about PLANNING AND IMPLENENTING a viable strategy to transform our current and future circumstances in our own neighborhood??
NIGGA PLEASE!!
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Blaq Citizens: Public Enemy Number One
By Thomas Ford
Originally Posted on October 6, 2012
A major problem with our electorate is many Brown & Blaq citizens refuse to read between the lines when they hear people describe President Obama or his policies. We have either forgotten or we ignore our consciousness, our gut feeling when we hear racial ‘code’ phrases synonymous with white supremacist ideology, i.e.,: food stamp president, he’s a Muslim, wasn’t born here, communist, socialist, he’s building the welfare state, he has a rhythm we don't understand, doesn’t have the stamina and desire to be president (lazy), false president, should go play basketball etc...
We heard these coded attacks on urban citizens before coming from several prominent presidential administrations Nixon, who called drug abuse "public enemy number one", which led to aggressive criminal justice policies. Nancy Regan’s “Just say no” campaign led to aggressive federal antidrug legislation. Remember Congress and the Reagan administration's response to crack cocaine vs. powder cocaine sentencing disparities, which resulted in the Antidrug Act of 1986, which established a 100:1 ratio for mandatory minimum sentencing associated with cocaine? It would take 5,000 grams of powdered cocaine to land you in prison for a minimum 10 years--but only 50 grams of crack.
“The war on drugs/get tough on crime” rhetoric which was code for, let’s instigate a war against poor Blaq/Brown citizens and make a whole bunch of loot in the process via the over-proliferation of the for-profit ‘PRISON PLANTATION INDUSTRY’ and mass incarceration.
EXIT-US, in Philadelphia, is the first and only social transformation organization to use the description, prison plantation industry to describe the over-criminalization of urban citizens; however, this excerpt from H. Bruce Franklin, “From Plantation to Penitentiary to the Prison-Industrial Complex: Literature of the American Prison”, 2000; (read below) provides a great historical analysis for why EXIT-US has coined this phrase.
...The prison looms today as a central feature of American society. Since 1976, we have been building on average one prison every week. More than two million Americans are now crammed into the nation's still overcrowded jails and prisons. In fact, there are now about as many prisoners in America as there are farmers. Over half of those incarcerated are people of color. More than four million Americans, again mainly people of color, have been permanently disenfranchised because of felony convictions, many under laws enacted explicitly to prevent African-Americans from voting. Studies have shown that this disenfranchisement has had a significant impact on the outcome of presidential and senate elections prior to 2000. We need no detailed studies to show the direct impact of this disenfranchisement on the most recent national election. Prior to November 2000, one third of the African-American men in Florida were convicted as felons and then stripped of their right to vote, while thousands more were purged from the voting rolls as alleged felons by fiat of a corporation hired by Governor Jeb Bush. If only a small percentage of Florida's 204,000 disenfranchised male African-American citizens (not to mention the other 200,000 disenfranchised ex-felons in Florida) had been allowed to vote in 2000, even the U.S. Supreme Court could not have installed George W. Bush as President of the United States..H. Bruce Franklin.
By Thomas Ford
Originally Posted on October 6, 2012
A major problem with our electorate is many Brown & Blaq citizens refuse to read between the lines when they hear people describe President Obama or his policies. We have either forgotten or we ignore our consciousness, our gut feeling when we hear racial ‘code’ phrases synonymous with white supremacist ideology, i.e.,: food stamp president, he’s a Muslim, wasn’t born here, communist, socialist, he’s building the welfare state, he has a rhythm we don't understand, doesn’t have the stamina and desire to be president (lazy), false president, should go play basketball etc...
We heard these coded attacks on urban citizens before coming from several prominent presidential administrations Nixon, who called drug abuse "public enemy number one", which led to aggressive criminal justice policies. Nancy Regan’s “Just say no” campaign led to aggressive federal antidrug legislation. Remember Congress and the Reagan administration's response to crack cocaine vs. powder cocaine sentencing disparities, which resulted in the Antidrug Act of 1986, which established a 100:1 ratio for mandatory minimum sentencing associated with cocaine? It would take 5,000 grams of powdered cocaine to land you in prison for a minimum 10 years--but only 50 grams of crack.
“The war on drugs/get tough on crime” rhetoric which was code for, let’s instigate a war against poor Blaq/Brown citizens and make a whole bunch of loot in the process via the over-proliferation of the for-profit ‘PRISON PLANTATION INDUSTRY’ and mass incarceration.
EXIT-US, in Philadelphia, is the first and only social transformation organization to use the description, prison plantation industry to describe the over-criminalization of urban citizens; however, this excerpt from H. Bruce Franklin, “From Plantation to Penitentiary to the Prison-Industrial Complex: Literature of the American Prison”, 2000; (read below) provides a great historical analysis for why EXIT-US has coined this phrase.
...The prison looms today as a central feature of American society. Since 1976, we have been building on average one prison every week. More than two million Americans are now crammed into the nation's still overcrowded jails and prisons. In fact, there are now about as many prisoners in America as there are farmers. Over half of those incarcerated are people of color. More than four million Americans, again mainly people of color, have been permanently disenfranchised because of felony convictions, many under laws enacted explicitly to prevent African-Americans from voting. Studies have shown that this disenfranchisement has had a significant impact on the outcome of presidential and senate elections prior to 2000. We need no detailed studies to show the direct impact of this disenfranchisement on the most recent national election. Prior to November 2000, one third of the African-American men in Florida were convicted as felons and then stripped of their right to vote, while thousands more were purged from the voting rolls as alleged felons by fiat of a corporation hired by Governor Jeb Bush. If only a small percentage of Florida's 204,000 disenfranchised male African-American citizens (not to mention the other 200,000 disenfranchised ex-felons in Florida) had been allowed to vote in 2000, even the U.S. Supreme Court could not have installed George W. Bush as President of the United States..H. Bruce Franklin.
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