Juilo Medina knows how hard it is for an ex-convict to get work. He was one. As he wrote about in The Good Men Project: Real Stories from the Front Lines of Modern Manhood (buy it here), he spent time in Sing Sing for drug and weapon-related offenses. Medina made it out, though, and eventually founded Exodus Transitional Community in New York City. It’s a program that helps teach former convicts—about 500 per year—the skills they need to reintegrate back into society. Exodus helps them find and then keep a steady job.
Medina and Exodus were featured in last week’s Economist:
Exodus helps ex-prisoners to get back on their feet. The numbers needing help are staggering. One in every 100 American adults is in prison or jail, one in 31 is under correctional supervision—and after their release, most will find themselves back behind bars. According to a new Pew report, 43% of American offenders are returned to state prison within three years of their release. The recidivism rate varies from state to state: 45% in Alaska and just 4.7% in Montana. But of the 301 people who completed the Exodus programme in 2010, only nine went back to prison.
The story talks more about Media and then goes on to profile other reintegration programs across the country. Check it out. It’s a good, quick read.