Ban the "Box!" -- Give people a second chance.

Here is Chris Westfall.  He is a journeyman glazier (can do anything with glass).  Chris can't get a job.  On virtually every job application, there is a box.  Beside the box is a statement on the order of, "Have you ever been convicted of a felony?"  Chris has to check the box since he has been incarcerated.  In most instances, the HR department discards his application immediately, not even bothering to determine if he is qualified for the job.  If public safety is our main concern, it is critical to allow ex-convicts to get jobs so they can pay all the expenses associated with parole.  Chris recently took a job as a waiter (something he's never done before) because his parole officer said Chris would go back to prison if he didn't have a job.  Back to prison because he has been in prison and that keeps him from getting a job in his field!  I say that if Chris gets an interview, that's time enough to disclose a previous conviction.  Let's give the hundreds of thousands of people who have been imprisoned in the United States a fighting chance to reenter society!

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