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Caption Kareemah Hanifa, left, stands with a patron at her Marietta hair salon in 2019. In addition to running her business, Hanifa advocates for others like herself who, long after serving their sentences, still shoulder the burden of their criminal histories. Credit: Courtesy of Kareemah Hanifa
Kareemah Hanifa is an activist, an entrepreneur, and a believer in second chances. She is one of 4.2 million Georgia citizens with a criminal record, having served a 26-year-long sentence from the age of 15 to 41.
Two years ago, Hanifa went to take her State Board Cosmetology Exam at Cobb Galleria with chains on her hands and feet. As she walked through the lobby, the other test-takers stared at her.