Recently, NPR ran a three-part series on L.A.'s Skid Row, ending with a look at the current circumstance of Nathaniel Ayers, subject of a major motion picture "The Soloist." Starring Jamie Foxx, the movie opened as the fourth most popular movie in America, grossing nearly $10 million in its opening weekend a few weeks ago. That makes this particular (now formerly) homeless man, and his particular circumstances, pretty high-profile. Such attention is critical to rallying support for the mission of ending homelessness in this country - but it's not entirely a free lunch.
A broad audience means a lot of people to please, and sets a tough standard for success. The public likes to see unequivocal gains that can be directly replicated, among people who are "deserving." I have not seen the
The Second Chance Act (SCA) is federal legislation designed to improve outcomes for people returning to the community from prisons and jails. This is Part IV of a four-part blog series. (
Read Part I,
Read Part II,
Read Part III)
At the end of 2006, I left my position at the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments and moved across the country, where I came to work at Building Changes (then AIDS Housing of Washington), in part because I had admired the agency's publication, From Locked Up to Locked Out: Creating and Implementing Post-release Housing for Ex-prisoners. My work branched out into general homelessness and HIV housing primarily, but I continued to monitor the Second Chance Act (SCA), which finally passed and was signed into law in April 2008. A major battle had been
The Second Chance Act (SCA) is federal legislation designed to improve outcomes for people returning to the community from prisons and jails. This is Part III of a four-part blog series. (Read Part I, Read Part II)
Looking back, it was possible to see the problem as a result which should have been predictable, of misguided policies enacted in agencies and offices across the United States during the previous decades. Mandatory minimums, the elimination of prison programming, and the shuttering of mental hospitals, without corresponding investment in community treatment and services, led to the release of many offenders with little hope and few options for finding work and becoming contributing members of society. Years of "tough-on-crime" speechifying came home to roost. Pennsylvania State
The Second Chance Act (SCA) is federal legislation designed to improve outcomes for people returning to the community from prisons and jails. This is Part II of a four-part blog series. (
Read Part I) I was working in an office that is now called the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments (a national membership organization of elected and appointed officials) when I first began hearing from administrators of these diverse organizations. They were meeting as members of a "Reentry Policy Council" convened by CSG to hammer out consensus-based recommendations to address post-incarceration challenges at a community level. These committed men and women from very different walks of life and points on the political spectrum discussed hundreds of ideas and examples to identify the most
The U.S. Department of Justice plans to release a solicitation for Second Chance Act (SCA) grants to state and local government on March 23, 2009, with applications due by May 21, 2009. A solicitation for grants to nonprofit organizations is expected to be released early in 2009 as well. Additional information about the SCA, including fact sheets about the sections authorizing both types of grants, are available from the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments.
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If you're in Washington State and are considering applying for SCA funding,
we'd like to hear from you! Please contact Katherine Cortes, Community Planner, at Building
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