News Release

Friday, February 4, 2011


GENERAL MEDIA NEWS RELEASE

TO: Local broadcast afflilates of ABC, NBC, FOX and CBS news departments.
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Bucks County Courier Times

FROM: Steven Gordon
300 Cushmore Road
Southampton, PA 18966
home phone: 215-357-9145
prepaid cell phone: 215-666-3174
email: nevets10@comcast.net

I am a 64-year-old veteran of the US Navy (submarine service) with a solid work history and skills. However I made a mistake and put myself in state prison. I served my entire 10 year sentence and now I can’t put it behind me. I have heard over and over, “We don’t hire convicted felons” even as my offense had nothing to do with the type of employment sought.

In 2000 I did something that was criminal and it was very wrong. I took responsibility. However the generalities and merely reading a file throws the shadow over it. The files do not show that it was not born from criminal thinking and further it does not automatically make me a bad person. It seems the latter gets overlooked.

The Philadelphia Inquirer is currently doing profiles of unemployed workers in this very tough economy and tight job market. The problem is from what I have seen is that it seems all warm and fuzzy stuff, and safe, with people who have college degrees and high qualifications unable to find work. In my estimation they would seem to be missing the mark all around.

My WIA counselor, Irene Dnistrian, at Career Link, Bristol Office in Bucks County answered a request to submit some names for consideration and mine was one of them. I realize not all the people who are submitted get selected but while I cannot be certain, I have a strong feeling my being an ex-offender played a part in it. I also don’t know if the Inquirer or someone at the Career Link squashed it.

Friday, Feb. 4th I attended a Civil Service workshop at the urging of Ms. Dnistrian and the veteran advisor at the Bristol Office, Mr. Rodney Wyatt. It wasn’t long into the workshop when the question came from me about having a felony conviction and being eligible for civil service state employment. The answer was no. There was no need for me to stay for the completion of the workshop.

Here us a question no one answers. If the offense has little or nothing to do with the job being sought, why is it an issue? Even if there is a concern, there is a Federal Bonding Program (FBP) to protect employers. Call the State Bonding Coordinator at 717-787-6915 for verification.

There is an entire segment of our society who are without college degrees, but they are hard workers and yes, some are ex-offenders looking for work. Thursday, Feb. 3rd I went to a Aldi location advertised in the classified ads hiring cashiers. The line was very long. I walked away without putting in an application with the mindset of the reality that the odds of getting a job were slim to start with and how many hundreds of people did not have a “history” who would be placed in front of me even if they hire ex-offenders.

Working with the Career Link I am taking free computer labs and programs like resume writing and how to find a job. I am doing everything asked of me and checking the classified ads and online job boards.

An interview is hard to get, but when I have gotten them I don’t get called back for second interviews. It usually goes ok until the “history” comes up. I listen to friends and counselors and even people who deny me a job say I have a lot to give and good luck. It is getting old and hollow even as those people are trying to be supportive.

All I ask for in my cover letters is to be considered based on my work history and accomplishments and not be judged on the basis of my “history.”

My personal situation is that I live with my elderly parents ages 86 & 89 on fixed incomes. I have nothing because I lost it all in divorce while in prison and my ex-wife holds a $500,000 personal injury judgment over my head such that I cannot even own anything if I had money to purchase it. One lawyer told me I might not even be able to buy a car free of the judgment. Great, when I do find a job I won’t have transportation to get to it.

The reality is that with a couple of missed heartbeats I am potentially another of Americas homeless veterans. I can’t even inherit anything. So I jump through the hoops, live and help out at home and remain unable to self sustain myself in spite of my collecting early SSA and Food Stamp benefits. Fortunately this country takes care of its veterans so I get medical care from the Veterans Administration because I am under the poverty level.

I write two blogs: Reentry to Society at www.restartingalife.blogspot.com and Thoughts from an Idle Mind at www.thoughtsidlemind.blogspot.com. I have talked to and met with local state and federal politicians about the issue. The president (I wrote him from prison before I was released) and politicians make speeches and talk about job plans to put America back to work. What exactly are these plans and where are the jobs?

In Pennsylvania the prison system is overcrowded. Guys getting released have no idea what they are facing upon release. I knew it would be tough, but the definition of this kind of tough borders on nearly impossible. Look at the statistics of how many people in Pennsylvania’s prisons are returned for parole violations or just committed other crimes.

I wonder if anyone has bothered to find out how much of that is related to being beaten down by society. Put these people back to work and the budget would not have to include billions of dollars for new prisons and perhaps we could put money into education and potentially keep people from going to prison on the front end.

Where are the second chances?

Cc: Mr. William DiMascio, PA Prison Society