ReintegrationFor this page, our goal is to present information regarding the challenges people face attempting to reintegrate into society after serving a prison sentence. We further wish to present perspectives upon how certain social groups may have more adverse challenges presented upon their release.
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Race and EthnicityWhen it comes to how race affects the process of reintegration, the racial component particularly comes into effect in regard to which crimes were committed and their subsequent effect. For example, according to Table 43 from the FBI crime report from 2019, 26.3% of drug-related crime was committed by black or African American peoples as compared to their approximate 12% composition of the US census. Such specific crimes have more significant impacts on peoples attempts to reintegrate into society. In this case, such individuals would render them ineligible for public housing as a result of their drug conviction (Dougherty, 2012). Further implications include barring from being accepted into government aid programs such as food stamps and welfare, which would further prevent an individual from successful reintegration into society.
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LGBTQWhen it comes to LGBTQ peoples, one of the most important factors regarding their successful reintegration into society is their acceptance in their community. Some incarcerated LGBTQ individuals turned to crime as a result of fleeing home due to a lack of acceptance from their friends/family. As such, some LGBTQ individuals when released from prison would not have as strong of a support system as a straight cisgender individual on average. Furthermore, during their time in prison, many transgender people are denied their healthcare needs and as a result physically harmed or uncomfortable in their bodies. This resulting physical state as well as mental or emotional stress could cause negatively influenced decision-making in the future such as returning to crime.
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Gender DisparityGender's effect on reintegration can also be observed via the lens of the crimes committed linked to the subsequent effect during reintegration. Some crimes are committed more often by men or women than the expected 50/50 ratio, which can drastically affect their ability to successfully reintegrate.
"Women in state prisons are more likely than men to be incarcerated for a drug or property offense. Twenty-six percent of women in prison have been convicted of a drug offense, compared to 13% of men in prison" (Fettig, 2020). Likewise, other crimes that are automatically considered felonies such as arson, robbery, and burglary are committed disproportionately by men (78.4%, 84.2%, 79.3%)(FBI, 2019) which affects their reintegration attempts negatively because of their felony conviction. |
Struggles of Reintegration
People with felony records have a much harder time finding, and keeping jobs. When they do find jobs, the are often less desired jobs like waste management, construction, and food services. These jobs are also highly unlikely to pay enough to support a family.
Felony convictions also typically came with the punishment of loss of access to government programs that would have seriously improved the chances of a successful reintegration into society by an incarcerated individual. Such programs include subsidized housing units, food stamps, welfare, and EBT. Individuals that are not applicable for this kind of aid were more financially vulnerable to the poor pay of their jobs (If they could find one) and more susceptible to falling back towards crime to support themselves. |
Reintegration StatisticsThe state with the highest percentage of people re-arrested within three years is Delaware at 64.5% and the lowest in Virginia at 23.4%. With the lowest state still having over one-fifth of their incarcerated population re-arrested, the issues are clear.
"Over 600,000 individuals are released from prison annually and three-quarters of them are rearrested within five years of their release (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2005)."(Li 2018)
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