An official with the Department of Justice said the agency will no longer call people “felons” or “convicts” after they are released from prison because it is too hard on them emotionally. Assistant Attorney General Karol Mason wrote a piece in The Washington Post Wednesday
saying “many of the formerly incarcerated men, women, and young people I talk with say that no punishment is harsher than being permanently branded a ‘felon’ or ‘offender.'” Mason said the decision is not to condone their behavior, but to use words to help them reenter society. In my role as head of the division of the Justice Department that funds and supports hundreds of reentry programs throughout the country, I have come to believe that we have a responsibility to reduce not only the physical but also the psychological barriers to reintegration. The labels we affix to those who have served time can drain their sense of self-worth and perpetuate a cycle of crime, the very thing reentry programs are designed to prevent. In an effort to solidify the principles of individual redemption and second chances that our society stands for, I recently issued an agency-wide policy directing our employees to consider how the language we use affects reentry success.
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2016/05/04/doj-decides-it-wont-call-people-felons-or-convicts-because-hurts-their-feelings/#ixzz48BEdT8J4
