Providing second chances is easier said than done. Many individuals continue paying a debt to society years after leaving prison due to such challenges as housing and employment restrictions.
Hopi Tribal Chairman Timothy Nuvangyaoma is using his past prison experience to bring to light problems for re-entry of Hopi and Indigenous peoples. Nuvangyaoma was the keynote speaker of the first Reentry Summit on Justice Involved Tribal Members that took place at Twin Arrows Casino Resort Aug. 17 - 18.
President Joe Biden is pardoning thousands of people convicted federally of simple marijuana possession charges, putting a spotlight on the barriers inmates face when they are released from prison.
As the Reentry Summit a Palm Beach County conference on life after incarceration approaches, Rhon Vassell, a 40-year-old formerly incarcerated electrician, says that trying to integrate back into society after prison is as much of a challenge as the sentence itself.