One way to drastically change the current American Punishment regime is by getting rid of the awful stigma of being an ex-con or family member of an ex-con. With better social and community support I believe this ideal is not far out of reach. One problem with going to prison is the horrible stigma that follows your time of incarceration. You are not only punished for the duration of your prison sentence but in many ways punished for life because of the negative stigma that follows. The “once a con, always a con” ideal is very much alive in America. America has seems to have no empathy for ex-cons after they are released back into society and this is another contributing factor to why America has such a high prisoner recidivism rate. These ex-prisoners find it near impossible to find legitimate work, so many resorts back to their criminal behaviors that lead them to prison in the first place. If America strips this stigma of what prisoners represent and in a sense give them a chance then one would start to see less people going back to prison in my perspective.
I think America would be pleasantly surprised to see recidivism rates and crime rates drop significantly if the system institutes more community and social support for ex-cons and families of ex-offenders. This would allow ex-offenders to get a helping hand at becoming an ideal citizen. I believe people have the capability of changing and modeling their lives to becoming better people. By giving these people a chance to succeed and chase the “American Dream” one would start to see the beginning to a brand new chapter in the American Punishment Regime.
Written By: Lucas Hart
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