Society should reevaluate how it treats ex-prisoners

Many ex-prisoners have encountered discrimination in society – companies rejecting their job applications, friends keeping them at arm's length.

I once interviewed a man who spent time in prison.

He told me he found a way to build a stable life when he was released and now runs his own handcraft studio in Shanghai.

However, he is reluctant to talk about his experience behind bars.

"Although I have paid the price for what I did, it is still hard for me to keep my head up," he said. "People who don't know me well often judge me by my prison experience."

Nevertheless, he is lucky because he has the ability to found his own business.

Some prisoners commit crimes again and can't build a normal life after they regain their freedom, because they can't find a decent job.

Another former prisoner who is divorced and raising a child told me she has felt inferior to others since she was released last year and is having a hard time finding a job.

Imaginechina

These problems make me wonder: How should society treat the ex-inmates, especially in providing them fair job opportunities?

When I was young, my parents told me to keep away from "bad" guys and ex-prisoners. My initial impression of those people was "ferocious and horrible." It seems that my individual bias, like the social one, is deeply rooted.

People make mistakes, even grave ones, and everyone wants to have a chance to correct them. As such, ex-prisoners need respect and justice from society.

A major study published last year in the journal of Jiangxi Police Institute finds that recidivists in China tend to be undereducated and have trouble finding jobs. The study points out how critical it is to prepare former inmates for better lives to ensure social stability.

Ti Gong

The Shanghai government has made a major push to help former inmates land on their feet. For example, there are programs where they can learn professional skills and deal with psychological problems.

An example is Qingpu Prison in suburban Qingpu District, which provides former inmates who have recently completed their sentences with a platform to adjust to life after prison.

They can learn farming skills in a local agricultural cooperative for one year. The cooperative also provides living place with basic supplies for the period.

After the first year, they can use what they have learnt to start their own business or apply for a position in the cooperative.

Also, Qingpu Prison provide various courses to inmates in fields such as agriculture, vehicle repairing, garment making as well as intangible heritage handcraft, aiming to educate them through "teaching them how to fish instead of giving them fish."

Ti Gong