the fortune news - The Fortune Society

THE FORTUNE NEWS
A FORTUNE SOCIETY PUBLICATION • VOLUME XLV • NOVEMBER 2014
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
featuring contributions from
The Fortune Society • National Employment Law Project • Community Service Society • VOCAL NY • and more
www.fortunesociety.org
“THE DEGREE OF CIVILIZATION IN A SOCIETY CAN BE JUDGED BY
ENTERING ITS PRISONS” —DOSTOEVSKI
The Fortune News 1
Table of Contents
Eye on Fortune
Letters to the Editor
Faces of Fortune
On the Record: Notes from Our Founder
Employment Services at The Fortune Society
A Perfect Match!
A Fair Chance for a Stronger Economy
“All I want is a fair chance at a good life.”
From Prisoner to Worker to Full Participation
Understanding Gun Violence is the First Step to Prevention
White House Champion of Change
Garnett Wilson
Center Stage
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Our Mission
The Fortune Society's mission is to support successful reentry from prison and
promote alternatives to incarceration, thus strengthening the fabric of
our communities.
We do this by:
BELIEVING in the power of individuals to change;
BUILDING LIVES through service programs shaped by the needs and
experience of our clients; and
CHANGING MINDS through education and advocacy to promote the creation
of a fair, humane, and truly rehabilitative correctional system.
Contact Us
212.691.7554
info@fortunesociety.org
The Fortune Society
29-76 Northern Blvd
Long Island City, NY 11101
The Fortune News
Walk-in Hours:
Monday through Friday
8:00am - 4:00pm
www.fortunesociety.org
Eye on Fortune
FORTUNE SOCIETY
EXCEEDS CAPITAL
CAMPAIGN GOAL!
The Fortune Society has exceeded its ambitious four-year capital campaign goal
of $2 million. Named Foundations for
Change led by Board Chair Betty Rauch,
the campaign raised the necessary funds
to equip, furnish, and staff the 20,000
sq.ft. Community Learning Center at
Castle Gardens, Fortune Society’s 11 story, affordable and supportive mixed-use
housing and service facility in West Harlem. Residents, board members and Fortune Society staff celebrated the successful completion of its capital campaign on
the Castle Gardens rooftop event on June
17, 2014.
Fortune Society launched the Foundations for Change campaign in 2010 to
create programs that would give Castle
Gardens residents on-site access to Fortune’s wide array of supportive reentry
services, including family services, nutrition programs and healthy cooking classes, drug and alcohol treatment, education,
computer classes, and so much more. To
date, the campaign has raised $2,010,000.
Individuals who donated gifts of $1,000
or more received a personalized brick on
Castle Gardens’ Wall of Hope, located in
the common area of the building.
“When we launched this campaign, we
had a vision – to offer long-term housing
solutions and vital services to formerly
incarcerated clients who strive to successfully reintegrate into society, as well as
to hard-working individuals and families
with limited income,” said JoAnne Page,
Fortune Society President and CEO. “Today, that vision is a reality.”
Among the costs covered by the campaign were infrastructure start-up costs,
technology/IT, furnishings, and a range
of key staffing positions.*
*This article originally appeared in the
New York Non Profit Press
JOANNE PAGE
CELEBRATES 25 YEARS
AT THE HELM OF THE
FORTUNE SOCIETY
JoAnne Page with New York State Senator
Velmanette Montgomery and Fortune Board Chair
Betty P. Rauch.
JoAnne Page, President and CEO of The
Fortune Society, marked her 25th year
as head of one of the nation’s most respected nonprofit organizations serving
and advocating for formerly incarcerated
individuals. Elected officials, supporters,
board members, staff, clients, and family gathered in West Harlem to toast her
extraordinary achievements and tireless
work helping more than 5,000 individuals each year rebuild their lives.
Over the years, Page has cultivated and
created many of Fortune’s signature programs, including substance abuse treatment, counseling, family services, HIV/
AIDS health services, alternatives to
incarceration, mental health programs,
job training and employment services,
education and parenting initiatives, and
supportive and permanent housing. These
innovative and successful initiatives are
national models.
This includes the opening of the groundbreaking Fortune Academy (aka the
Castle), supportive housing for men and
women released from prison into homelessness. With the Castle, Page took an
abandoned drug den and eyesore to the
community and turned it into a place of
hope and understanding. In 2010, in a
lot adjacent to the Castle, Fortune completed construction on and opened Castle
Gardens, a green, mixed affordable and
supportive housing development with
114 apartments and 20,000 square feet of
service space.
In celebration of Page’s outstanding tenure, Manhattan Borough President Gale
A. Brewer presented her with a proclamation. In part, the proclamation read, “Ms.
Page’s tireless work to realize The Fortune Society’s mission has inspired advocates, community leaders, and elected
officials to promote the rights and wellbeing of the formerly incarcerated and
help improve their prospects for success.”
New York State Senator Velmanette
Montgomery presented Page with a Senate resolution. It states, “From time to
time, this Legislative Body takes note
of certain extraordinary individuals and
organizations it wishes to recognize for
their valued contributions to the success
and progress of society and publicly acknowledge their endeavors which have
enhanced the basic humanity among us
all. This Legislative Body is justly proud
to commend JoAnne Page.”
JoAnne Page with Fortune Founder David
Rothenberg.
Page said, “I am very proud and humbled
to be on this journey with these extraordinary and deserving men and women
as they work to reach their full potential
and to re-establish their place in society
in a positive way. At Fortune, our clients
need a strong support system to start over
and that would not be possible without
the dedicated staff, magnificent board,
and generous supporters who work tirelessly to ensure that we accomplish our
mission each and every day.”
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 1
Eye on Fortune
2014 FORTUNE FALL
BENEFIT
Hundreds of New Yorkers who are deeply committed to justice, including leaders
of industry and business, criminal justice
advocates, members of the entertainment
industry, and government officials gathered on October 14th at the Tribeca Rooftop for the Fortune Society’s 2014 Annual Fall Benefit. The event raised more
than $200,000 to support programs that
help Fortune’s clients successfully reenter their communities and rebuild their
lives after serving time in prison and jail.
Among the evening’s highlights was the
presentation of the David Rothenberg
Achievement Award to Marc Morial,
President and CEO of the National Urban
League. Named in tribute to Fortune’s
founder, the award recognizes individuals for their commitment to and support
of successful reentry services for formerly incarcerated men and women.
Samuel Peabody and his late wife Judith
Peabody were also honored with Fortune’s Game Changer Award for their
courageous social activism as well as
their commitment to helping people with
AIDS and addiction issues. Together,
the couple founded and worked at Reality House, a drug rehabilitation center in
northern Manhattan operating from a net-
work of storefronts and at two maximum
security prisons. Sam also served as one
of Fortune’s very first board members,
helping the organization to grow into one
of the most prominent prisoner reentry
agencies in the country.
In presenting the award to Marc Morial, JoAnne Page, President and CEO of
The Fortune Society said, “Mr. Morial
has been the primary catalyst for an era
of change. His energetic leadership and
efforts have redefined civil rights in the
21st century, moving urgent criminal justice and economic reform issues forward
through national dialogue and activism.
We are pleased to recognize Mr. Morial,
a true trailblazer, with this prestigious
award.”
“Samuel Peabody and his late wife Judith
have supported Fortune Society’s efforts
to provide life-changing programs to formerly incarcerated individuals, since day
one,” said Page. “Their friendship and
unwavering support has proven to be invaluable as we advocate for those whose
voices would otherwise go unheard. It
is with great honor that we present the
Peabodys with this special award,” concluded Page.
Marc Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League and
recipient of the David Rothenberg Achievement Award, with Stanley
Richards, Fortune Senior Vice President.
2
The evening offered performances by
Todd Almond, composer and star of The
Tempest and The Winter’s Tale, the first
two shows of Public Works, a community-based initiative of The Public Theater,
and The Fortune Tellers, an acting troupe
consisting of Fortune Society clients,
volunteers and staff, who performed an
original scene from The Winter’s Tale.
Page concluded the evening by saying, “I
would like to thank all those who made
this year’s Fall Benefit such a stunning
success, including our esteemed honorees, the Public Theater, the members of
the Fortune staff who worked tirelessly
ensuring that every detail was perfect,
and all who gather here tonight. Your
support will give men and women with
criminal histories a strong and positive
support network that will put them on a
path to becoming successful, tax-paying
members of their communities.”
The 2014 Annual Fall Benefit was cochaired by Carole and Richard Eisner,
Mark Lebow and Patricia Harris, Kimberly and Dennis Kozlowski, Bill McCormack, Betty and Michael Rauch, and
Nancy and David Solomon.
The Public Theater Public Works program performance featuring
Fortune staff and clients.
The Fortune News
www.fortunesociety.org
Letters to the Editor
Letters in this issue are in response to the May 2014 Education issue.
Dear Editor,
Education has not received enough attention
as a strategy for not entering prison in the
first place. Law makes talk of trimming the
budget and education, not prisons, is hit the
hardest. Just here in Florida we have schools
without a music department and only three
sports teams. Our elected officials want
to solve the problem of crime but do little
to prevent it and even less to stop crime
from reoccurring by the same individuals.
Samuel Byrd J44465
ACI – East
35 Apalachee Drive
Sneads, FL 32460
Dear Editor,
If the goal of “Correctional” facilities is
to correct wrong behavior and rehabilitate its occupants, providing college opportunities for them is obviously a viable
option. Nevertheless, a mass controversy
has ensued at the mention of the state doing so. Instead of where the attention
should be, it is misdirected by false statements throughout the media: “It’s a waste
of taxpayer’s dollars,” is the popular
battle cry for those who fight against it.
Contrary to their battle cry, allowing
prisoners to receive a college education
would be money well spent, ultimately
saving taxpayer’s dollars in the long run,
and causing a reduction in the crime rate.
The facts are vividly illustrated through
the following Hudson Link statistics:
-National rate of recidivism across the US
is 43%
-Recidivism rate among inmates who have
graduated from the Hudson Link college
programs is “Zero” percent
-260 college degrees have been delivered
since 2001
-Over 250 inmates are presently enrolled in
Hudson Link
It costs an average of $54,000 - $60,000
per year to house 1 prisoner. It costs only
$5,000 per year for Hudson Link to help an
inmate receive a Bachelor’s degree, totaling
an average of $35,000 over a 7 year period.
Those facts need to be highlighted, along
with the many success stories of ex-convicts who have received degrees through
Hudson Link and went on to become lawabiding, taxpaying members of society.
I’ve been incarcerated since 1994, and fortunately I already had a degree at that time.
However, many of my peers who entered
the system with no GED, and no clear path
for a crime-free life upon release, have been
reformed through education. They studied
with diligence, earned their GED, and went
on to enroll in the Hudson Link college
program. Some have already graduated
and now encourage others to do the same.
What those men gained from their education was not a waste of taxpayer’s dollars.
It was a profitable investment, the results
of which have reformed them from being
a financial burden upon society, to becoming law abiding men who help build the
economy, while influencing other would-be
criminals to follow the same positive path.
The “Us against them” mentality is so prevalent in the opposing voices, they stand unequivocally against anything that resembles
a benefit for inmates. So blinded by their
agenda, they do not see the full picture.
The general public will continuously be
misled by those who vehemently oppose
college for inmates—regardless of the
actual benefits—until the truth receives
more exposure than the propaganda.
Juan Rogers
Greene Correctional Facility
Coxackie, NY
Dear Editor,
I cannot answer for the prison system as
a whole, or even for a region; but as for
whether education has received enough attention as a strategy for successful reentry
where I am incarcerated, I can answer
emphatically, NO!
Who is at fault for this? Those cutting
funding for education programs or the prisoner’s lack of initiative in taking advantage
of the programs available? I say both!
There is certainly a lack of educational opportunities and what’s more is that the existing opportunities seem to be diminishing
quickly. The reason behind this is said to
be funding, or a lack thereof. Meanwhile,
the focus of available funding is funneled
into undisclosed areas or directed toward
construction projects and the like, including new complexes, new kitchens, the
mending of sidewalks, lawn maintenance,
and other things aesthetically pleasing. In
short, things which are only beneficial to
the eye are receiving attention in its place.*
Sean Atchley
BCCX Site II
Pikeville, TN
*excerpt from longer letter unable to be
printed in this issue.
We want
to hear
from you!
write us at
Fortune News
C/O The Fortune Society
29-76 Northern Blvd.
Long Island City, NY 11101
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 3
Faces of Fortune
My name is John Halushka and I am a PhD candidate and adjunct instructor in the Department of Sociology at
New York University. I study prisoner reentry and volunteer at The Fortune Society because I believe that mass
incarceration represents the greatest civil rights crisis of our generation, and Fortune is at the front lines of fighting that battle.
I’ve been a volunteer at Fortune since 2011. I learned about the organization after attending “Think Outside the
Cell,” a national symposium on mass incarceration held at the Riverside Church in Harlem. It was through this
experience that I decided to get involved as a volunteer and conduct a research project at The Fortune Society.
JOHN
HALUSHKA
Volunteer
My research at Fortune focuses on how clients navigate the barriers to employment and fatherhood, and the role
that Fortune plays in facilitating this process. Over the course of the last three years, I participated in the Employment and Family Services units as an intern and ethnographic researcher. In addition to collecting participantobservation and interview data, I have also worked with clients one-on-one and in group settings to create
resumes; I designed and taught curriculum on resume writing in the Job Readiness Workshop; I conducted mock
job interviews, made outreach phone calls, and performed general office duties as well.
I am proud to be a part of the volunteer team at Fortune and I am immensely grateful for Fortune’s openness and
generosity in allowing me to conduct my dissertation research here.
My name is Hubert Lila and I currently hold the position of Resource Coordinator for Employment Services at
Fortune. I am also the Mentoring Coordinator for our Project Compass Program and was recently elected captain
of the Crisis Incident Team.
As a formerly incarcerated individual, I had the opportunity to chair several prison-based organizations such as
Community Minded Organization, CAU, and ILC. During this time, I was fortunate to cultivate essential skills
that have aided my professional development at Fortune. It was also during my incarceration that I was successful at obtaining a Bachelor’s of Science in Business followed by a Masters of Professional Studies.
HUBERT
LILA
In the past year, I volunteered for several Fortune events, and witnessed how The Fortune Society’s mission impacts our community at large. I also believe in helping the entire Fortune community by serving on the LGBTQI
Task Force and organizing a tie drive where I supervised the collection of 1,100 ties for our participants. I currently volunteer for the Nassau County D.A.’s Community Outreach Program (COTA) helping people reintegrate into society and make a positive transition.
Resource
Coordinator
Employment
Services
I am grateful for the opportunity to work here and to my supervisors for identifying my potential and for continually drawing out my talent and abilities. I am also appreciative of our clients for their daily inspiration. At
Fortune, we are blessed to witness miracles every day, where people grow, change, and transform their lives.
I am thankful for the opportunity to grow and learn alongside them.
My name is Earl Harriston. I came to Fortune around July of 2013. I did the two-week Job Readiness program in
Employment Services. After a month or two, I was working two jobs but remembered learning about the Environmental Remediation Training that Laura Senkevitch, the teacher for the class, had told my workshop about. I
thought this training would give me more skills and lead to a better job. So I called my career advisor and she referred me to Laura. After an interview and admissions screening, I was accepted into the six-week Environmental
Remediation Training program in April 2014.
EARL
HARRISTON
Client
4
It was a great class that Laura made even more interesting. She was clear and patient and taught things in a way
that made it easy to understand. After I graduated, I decided to take part in a paid internship provided by Fortune
and I was hired by Build it Green in the Gowanus neighborhood. I worked in a warehouse setting with junk lovers for people who donated stuff. I cleaned it off and stacked it. It was good work because otherwise that stuff
would have ended up in a landfill. The internship is over and I’m going to continue with Build it Green. I have a
full-time job with them now as a floor associate, making sure all the donations get put in their proper place.
Fortune means a lot to me. I’m so thankful that I came here. I was in the halfway house and thought I could just
do all of this on my own. Once I put myself in these shoes to walk in the journey, it was amazing. I’m going to be
around Fortune and stay in touch.
The Fortune News
www.fortunesociety.org
On the Record:
Notes from Our Founder
“Send me two more like John. He’s the best.”
DAVID
ROTHENBERG
Founder
The Fortune
Society
In the early days of The Fortune Society, I
learned something new every day.
It was the early 1970s and we were a small
group but growing by leaps and bounds
as advocates for the formerly incarcerated
and also responding to the needs of men
and women coming through our doors.
Their needs were overwhelming, but rarely
verbalized. Most men and women leaving
prison don’t talk about their fears of society or about the unchecked demons that, in
the past, were ignored with a retreat into
drugs or alcohol.
The one thing nearly everyone proclaimed
with confidence that it would solve all their
problems was “I need a job.” We responded
by establishing a job placement unit and
going into the community, persuading
corporations, stores, and non-profit groups
to “take a chance” on someone who had
done time.
One day, I was witness to a guy named
John storming out of Fortune’s front door,
mouthing obscenities. That surprised me.
John was a personable man, hanging out
at Fortune for several weeks. Everyone
seemed to like him and his rage revealed a
component previously unseen.
I asked Mel Rivers if he knew the reason for
John’s anger. Mel told me: “He wants to be
sent out on a job interview and I told him
‘not yet.’ John’s still getting high and he
can’t make appointments on time. We can’t
recommend him to an employer. The tough
part is that John is smart and charming.
He’ll be able to find a job on his own and
www.fortunesociety.org
he’ll blow it in a couple of weeks. I warned
him that a small setback will give him an
excuse to start hustling again and he’ll be
back in jail in weeks.”
I asked Mel, “Will he know you are doing
what’s best for him?” Mel answered, “I
can’t guess what he’ll know. I have to do
what I think is right.”
Two months later, John returned, humbled
by his weeks on the streets. He told us that
he was a whisper away from doing a third
bid and he couldn’t do time anymore. Mel
sat him down and told him to stop talking
and start listening. He said, “A guy like you
can always find a job, but you have to learn
how to hold one. You’re also smart enough
to think about a career as well as a job.”
The challenge to John was put forth. Could
he show up at Fortune at 10 AM every
morning on time for two weeks? Did he have
the discipline, the sense of responsibility so
he could be recommended for a job?
The second challenge was the hard part -was he ready to confront his demons, the
internal conflicts that were his alone and
which, in the past, had led him to drugs and
booze?
John started going to AA meetings. You can
find one anywhere in the city, seven days
a week, morning, noon, or night. Yes, he
found a job and must have been OK since
we didn’t hear from him for awhile.
when we say “Go slow. Learn to live out
here. Be ready, not desperate, when you go
for a job interview.”
Thousands hit the streets each year, out of
the jails and prisons. Few are afforded the
opportunity to go slow, like the folks at The
Castle.
The real villain in this tale is unstated. The
prison experience does virtually nothing to
suggest reality in preparing people for a job,
either by training them with an employable
skill or by failing to point out the difficulty
in adjusting to a fast-moving, decisionmaking existence. And to confronting the
demons which are harbored in many, ready
to emerge at the first on-the-job frustration.
Yes, a job provides security and dignity, the
antithesis of doing time. But there are layers
of complexities in getting ready to get and
hold a job.
The good news is that it’s possible. We have
a long list of happy employers who “took
a chance” with a man or woman who did
time.
The best thing to hear is when an employer
calls and says “Send me two more like
John. He’s the best.”
There is nothing better than a man or
woman who wants a job badly – and then
delivers. It’s possible, particularly when
you know the traps.
I share that story because that was when the
lightbulb was turned on for me. We were
meeting men for whom parole had given
them a list of what they couldn’t do and one
order of what they had to do – “find a job!”
It’s reality. It cost something to live out
there – pay rent, buy food and clothes, etc.
It’s a trap because the failure syndrome is
part of the prison/job failure/back to prison
revolving door.
At the Fortune Academy (“The Castle”),
where 62 formerly incarcerated men and
women live, they have the luxury of not
rushing to a job. Many don’t believe us
The Fortune News 5
Employment Services at
The Fortune Society
Our goal in Employment Services is to assist our participants in developing and pursuing their individual career goals to obtain personal and
financial sustainability. We do this by utilizing industry professionals, adhering to a strengths-based approach, and consistently finding new
ways to improve our programs and curriculum. We raise the bar with intensive coursework and career development support, and remain active
in economic and workforce working groups to stay current in the needs and opportunities within the region.
How it Works
All of Fortune’s job seekers are first enrolled in the Job Readiness Workshop, Part 1. This workshop provides job seekers with a valuable set of
tools for their job search, including instruction on producing a professional resume and speaking to its content, problem solving, time management, and practice in answering difficult questions, especially surrounding their criminal justice involvement.
Job seekers who apply and are selected for one of our intensive vocational training programs must first enroll in our Job Readiness Workshop,
Part 2 (Sector-Specific). This workshop serves as an entry point and instills the core competencies needed for job seekers to be well-prepared
for the intensive, off-site, sector-based vocational skills training. Job seekers who complete this workshop can move on to one of two sectorbased training programs:
Green Jobs Training
In the area of Green Jobs Training, Fortune offers two tracks:
Environmental Remediation Training includes:
• OSHA 10-hour Construction Health and Safety
• OSHA 40-hour HAZWOPER
• OSHA Confined Space
• EPA Lead Renovator
• Disaster Site Worker
• NYS Asbestos Handler
• NYC Asbestos Handler
Green Building Operations and Maintenance Training includes:
• OSHA 10-hour Construction Health and Safety
• EPA Lead Renovator
• GǀPRO Fundamentals
• GǀPRO Operation and Maintenance
• BPI Energy Efficiency Building Performance
Fortune Green Job Training Students
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The Fortune News
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Culinary Skills Training
In the area of Culinary Skills Training, Fortune offers the
following:
• proper knife-handling skills
• safety and sanitation procedures
• identification and use of kitchen equipment
• classic vegetable cuts; stock, soup, and sauce production
• preparation and seasoning of a wide range of dishes, courses,
and meals
Upon completion of the training, students will obtain the ServSafe
certification and the NYC Food Protection certification, two
industry-recognized certifications.
Culinary Skills Training students at QEDC Entrepreneur Space
Transitional Work
Graduates from either of the trainings described above have the
opportunity to connect to paid Transitional Work as means to apply
their newly acquired skills with an industry employer. Participants
enrolled in Transitional Work earn $9/hour for 21 hours a week for
11 weeks while developing the concrete skills and gaining handson experience needed to obtain permanent sector-based employment. Job seekers also participate in a weekly Job Club, which
adds further support and guidance on professional networking and
marketing their skills to employers. The supportive nature of Job
Club combined with the practical experience of Transitional Work
is the key to the success of our program. In a recent cohort, over
75% of Transitional Work graduates went on to gain full time employment.
All job seekers are supported by both an Account Manager and a
Career Advisor. Account Managers work with job seekers on direct
job placement by developing relationships with employers, understanding a job seeker’s skill set, coordinating job searches, and
scheduling and prepping job seekers for interviews, with the goal
of obtaining permanent employment. Simultaneously, Career Advisors screen the job seeker to identify needs and potential barriers
to employment, assess the job seeker’s aptitude, work with the job
seeker to develop and update his/her career plan, make appropriate
referrals for services, and track the job seeker’s progress towards
goal attainment.
What’s New in Employment
Services at The Fortune Society
With the assistance of external funding from the Tiger Foundation and Capital One Bank, this past year we have strengthened
our partnership with the Queens Economic Development Corporation (QEDC) to include job opportunities for our Culinary
Training graduates. We have also had a significant presence at
multiple QEDC-sponsored events. We have increased our Transitional Work offerings by expanding our employer partnerships
and we have also seen great successes from our Green Training
program graduates and have fostered new partnerships with local union and government agencies to support full-time employment opportunities. We have enhanced our Job Readiness Workshop by leveraging agency-wide improvements and through
increased Board involvement, particularly with assistance in our
mock interview process.
Fortune Society clients have benefited greatly from agency-wide
improvements at our Long Island City, Queens location. These
improvements include facility upgrades—funded by The Robin
Hood Foundation—for our downstairs open area allowing for
additional event and workshop space, as well as our reception
Fortune staff and student at QEDC Entrepreneur Space
and upstairs kitchen area enhancing the supportive, warm-welcome
message we bring to our clients. Our newly renovated space downstairs fosters flexible programming and inspiration. Supported by
Culinary interns, we have expanded our hot lunch program—the
Fortune Café—to serve healthy meals, three times a day, to our clients in our newly renovated space. Courtesy of our Board Chair,
Betty Rauch, retired executives generously assist in participant
mock interviews as part of our Job Readiness Workshop.
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 7
Employment Services at The Fortune Society Cont.
For our Green Jobs Training, we have worked to strengthen our
relationship with our local brownfield office, the NYC Mayor’s
Office of Environmental Remediation (OER). In the past, their office has provided us with industry guidance to shape our program’s
curriculum. More recently, they have begun to open up substantial
new networking and employment prospects for Green Jobs Training
graduates. Late last year, Ms. Lee Ilan, Chief of Planning, and Daniel Walsh, Executive Director, reached out to The Fortune Society
to re-launch their BrownfieldWorks! program. Since its re-launch,
the program has enrolled six of The Fortune Society’s graduates in
a new mentorship program and aims to create unique opportunities
to obtain at least three months of direct brownfield remediation experience on NYC projects.
Fortune Green Jobs Training Student at graduation
Get Involved
Want more information on how to enroll in our Employment Services?
Contact Laura Senkevitch at lsenkevitch@fortunesociety.org or call 718-571-7942
Want to learn how to hire our trained and talented job seekers?
Contact Michael Brundidge at mbrundidge@fortunesociety.org or call 347-510-3682
Want to volunteer with our Employment Services department?
Contact Benjamin Solotaire at bsolotaire@fortunesociety.org or call 347-510-3645
Thank You
Fortune’s Employment Services would not be possible without the funding and support of the following agencies and foundations:
Funders:
Training Providers:
The Robin Hood Foundation
The Tiger Foundation
Capital One Bank
Cummings Memorial Fund
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Department of Labor
U.S. Administration for Children and Families
NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services
NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance
ANDO International
Solar One
Queens Economic Development Corporation (QEDC)
Kingsborough Community College (CUNY)
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The Fortune News
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A Perfect Match!
The Transition Network’s Volunteer Project with The Fortune Society `
BETTY P.
RAUCH
Board Chair
The Fortune
Society
In addition to serving as The Fortune
Society’s Board Chair, I volunteer with
an organization called The Transition
Network, or TTN. This national non-profit
describes itself as an inclusive community
of professional women, 50 and forward,
whose life changing situations lead them
to seek new connections, resources, and
opportunities. I like what TTN says about
itself: “TTN is a relevant voice for women
who continue to change the rules.”
issue with the program – Fortune staff
members, some of whom do not have a lot
of outside work experience and all of whom
are known by the workshop participants,
conduct most of the mock interviews. Thus
the workshop participants did not get the
valuable experience of interviewing with
people they do not know. It seemed to me
that this was a perfect opportunity for TTN
members with their years of experience and
their interest in taking on challenging and
stimulating assignments. Eileen Kobin,
then Chair of TTN-NYC’s Volunteer
Committee, was enthusiastic when I
one another and with the Fortune staff who
look to us for our input, observations, and
recommendations. Eileen Konrin summed
up the consensus of the group: “Like the rest
of us, Fortune’s clients struggle with their
mistakes. But they face terrible additional
odds and carry the scar of their crimes on
their records for the rest of their lives. Being
able to coach and interview these clients
gives them some confidence that they are
not totally defined by their conviction. The
appreciation they show for our taking the
time to talk with them is overwhelming knowing that maybe I helped them to gain
suggested the project.
a bit of their confidence back… I feel I get
back more than I give!”
TTN-NYC’s Volunteer Committee works
hard to develop and offer challenging and
stimulating opportunities to our members
– activities that call on members’ existing
skills and experiences, provide new
challenges and stimuli, and which make a
real, direct difference to the organizations
we partner with and the lives of the people
impacted by the project.
That is why I thought that there was
a potentially perfect match to be made
between TTN and The Fortune Society. As
we all know, Fortune provides a wide array
of services – from housing and health care
to GED preparation to pre-employment
and employment services. I focused on the
work of Employment Services as an area
both in need of assistance and for which
TTN members were uniquely skilled to
help. Here’s why:
Fortune’s Employment Services program
is designed to equip formerly incarcerated
jobseekers with the skills necessary to obtain
employment and thrive in the workplace.
The two-week job-readiness workshop
teaches clients how to network, excel in
interviews, answer difficult conviction
questions, and create a professional resume
and cover letter. I was aware of a problem
The program was a huge success, and has
spread beyond just the mock interviews.
Two of the volunteers developed a helpful
script/guide for interviewers. One volunteer
is assisting Fortune staff members in
preparing client resumes.
Another is
developing
post-interview
feedback
sessions to give general pointers and
suggestions about interview techniques to
the whole group of workshop participants.
At this point we have 15 volunteers, 10 from
TTN plus other friends, spouses, and one
other Board member, Jerry Eber. Volunteers
commit to at least one Thursday a month
from 1 to 3:30 PM. One of the best aspects
of our work at Fortune is that we function
as a team; we have lively discussions with
Ann Travers, director of Fortune’s
Employment Services unit explains,
“TTN’s volunteers expose our clients
to a level of professionalism and valid,
real-world expectations that many of our
jobseekers are unaccustomed to. Our
clients appreciate, and are very open to, the
outside perspective they receive from these
volunteers. We are all so grateful for TTN’s
willingness to help with the professional
development of our clients.”
So – it does seem the TTN and The Fortune
Society are a perfect match!
To learn more visit:
www.thetransitionnetwork.org
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 9
A Fair Chance for a
Stronger Economy
“Ban the Box” Sweeps the Country
MICHELLE
NATIVIDAD
RODRIGUEZ
Senior Staff
Attorney
National
Employment Law
Project
Nationwide, about 70 cities and counties
and 13 states have now taken the critical step
of removing unfair barriers to employment
in their hiring policies. Widely known as
“ban the box,” these fair-hiring initiatives
typically remove the question on the job
application about an individual’s conviction
history and delay the background check
inquiry until later in the hiring process.
An estimated 70 million U.S. adults have a
criminal record that may prevent them from
finding gainful employment. Creating a fair
chance for all job seekers to be considered
first on their qualifications helps open
opportunities for marginalized communities
and ensures the broadest applicant pool for
employers.
In 1998, Hawaii had the distinction of
becoming the first state to adopt this policy
of removing conviction questions from job
applications. However, it wasn’t until the
early 2000s that the grassroots civil rights
organization, All of Us or None (AOUON),
coined the phrase “ban the box” and
sparked a movement. Momentum for the
policy has grown exponentially since then,
particularly in recent years. Just in 2013
and 2014, eight states passed legislation.
Today, more than 100 million people
now live in states where job applicants
are judged on their merits, not just their
criminal records. With the addition of
Delaware, Nebraska, and New Jersey in
2014, the 13 states that have adopted the
policies represent nearly every region of the
10
country—California (2013, 2010), Colorado
(2012), Connecticut (2010), Delaware
(2014), Hawaii (1998), Illinois (2014,
2013), Maryland (2013), Massachusetts
(2010), Minnesota (2013, 2009), Nebraska
(2014), New Jersey (2014), New Mexico
(2010), and Rhode Island (2013).
Six states—Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts,
Minnesota, New Jersey, and Rhode
Island—have removed the conviction
history question on job applications for
private employers, which many advocates
embrace as the next step in the evolution of
these policies. Several national companies,
including Walmart, Target, and Bed,
Bath, and Beyond, have also removed
the conviction question from their initial
application forms.
Throughout the country, policymakers
from both sides of the aisle are working
to become “smart on crime” by reducing
criminal justice spending and recidivism
at the same time that they increase public
safety. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
issued the following statement in support of
the legislation recently passed in his state:
“[T]oday, we are banning the box and
ending employment discrimination. And
this is going to make a huge difference for
folks who have paid their debts to society,
who want to start their lives over again and
are going to have an opportunity to do just
that in our state.”
Federally, the U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) endorsed
removing the conviction question from
the job application as a best practice in its
2012 guidance for employment decisions
considering arrests and convictions. The
Obama Administration’s My Brother’s
Keeper Task Force also gave the movement
a boost when it endorsed hiring practices
“which give applicants a fair chance and
allows employers the opportunity to judge
individual job candidates on their merits.”
The Fortune News
In an era of extreme mass incarceration,
fair chance campaigns provide a platform
to educate the public about the stigma of a
criminal record and the real consequences
to our society of depriving millions of
Americans with past convictions of
economic stability. Citing public safety
benefits
and
supporting
economic
vitality, policymakers have included fair
chance hiring reform as part of a more
comprehensive effort. For example,
jurisdictions have also adopted hiring
policies modeled on the EEOC guidance
that require the employer to demonstrate
that the conviction records restrictions are
directly related to the job and that applicants
are individually assessed for the position.
The next big wins for a fair chance for all
may come from the two most populous
cities in the United States. In New York
City, the NYC Fair Chance Act, a measure
applying to all employers, was introduced
in April 2014 with strong support in the
City Council. Campaign partners for the
Fair Chance Act, such as VOCAL-NY,
Community Service Society, and NELP,
believe that the bill will ensure that all
New Yorkers have a fair chance to succeed.
In Los Angeles, LA Voice, a faith-based
coalition dedicated to improving the lives of
all Angelenos, partnered with Los Angeles
Mayor Eric Garcetti and Councilmember
Curren Price, Jr., to introduce fair chance
legislation this year.
To support state and local efforts to enact
a fair chance policy, NELP published the
Fair Chance – Ban the Box Toolkit, which
provides a step-by-step guide. Embedded in
the Toolkit is a range of resources to draft
a law, to build the campaign, to support
outreach, and even to develop media
outreach.
For additional information,
contact Michelle Natividad Rodriguez at
mrodriguez@nelp.org.
www.fortunesociety.org
“All I want is a fair
chance at a good life.”
BRIAN
PEARSON
Member
VOCAL-NY
When I came home from prison in 2010, all
I wanted was a fresh start for my daughter
and me. I knew I couldn’t go back to the
way I was living before. I already had four
felonies, and I couldn’t imagine spending
more time locked up and away from my
family.
I applied for a dozen jobs a day, but on
every application I’d have to face my past
with one question: “Have you ever been
convicted of a felony?” Sometimes I left the
checkboxes blank, hoping they wouldn’t
ask again; other times I’d write, “yes - will
explain in interview”, but only twice got
the opportunity. Every time, I felt like I
was being judged for who I was when I got
convicted, not for the person I am today.
POETRY
Being denied a fair shot at a job over and
over again can take a toll on your selfesteem. With so many people telling you
that you aren’t good enough, you can really
start to believe it. I started applying to fewer
and fewer jobs and felt like employers
would always see me as a felon, not a
person.
However, things changed for me when
someone gave me a fair chance. I became
involved in a community organization
called VOCAL-NY, where formerly
incarcerated people come together to fight
for our rights to be included in society. It
was soon after Hurricane Sandy and there
was massive destruction across New York
City. They needed workers to learn how
to safely clean up the debris and remove
mold so that people could return to healthy
homes. VOCAL-NY advocated for people
with criminal records to be hired for these
jobs – and we won! The employers gave
me a chance to prove who I was in an
interview and really get to know what I’m
about – not just judge me on my criminal
record history. I got hired, and now I’m in
a union, earning a wage that pays the bills
and allows me to provide for my family.
I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity
to live a decent life, but I know that there
are so many others out there struggling to
find work.
That’s why I continue to advocate and
have been active in the campaign to pass
the Fair Chance Act in New York City. The
Fair Chance Act is City Council legislation
that makes it illegal to ask about a person’s
criminal record history until after a
conditional job offer. That means that on the
application and in the interview, they can’t
ask about your record. The Fair Chance Act
also says that if your felony is more than
10 years old, or your misdemeanor is over
5 years old, it can’t be used against you
Paths and Choices
anymore. These are major changes that I
know would make a real difference for me
when I’m looking for a job.
The bill is not law yet – but we have more
than 35 co-sponsors in the City Council
and a hearing set for December. There are
dozens of community organizations, like
Fortune Society, that support the bill too.
I’m hopeful that it’ll pass and that people
with criminal records can finally get a fair
chance to work.
Our society has created so many barriers
for people with criminal records. We can’t
work certain jobs, we can’t live in certain
places, we can’t vote until we’re off parole,
and we’re constantly being stigmatized for
things we did in the past. I’m not saying I
didn’t make mistakes – but I served my time
and now I should be allowed to live just like
anyone else. I’m not asking for anything to
be handed to me – all I want is a fair chance
at a good life.
Brian Pearson is a member of VOCAL-NY,
a grassroots community organization that
builds power among low-income people
impacted by HIV/AIDS, the drug war, and
mass incarceration to create healthy and
just communities. Contact VOCAL-NY at
www.vocal-ny.org
by Frank Bright
Look at your future youngin.
There’s more to the streets than just buggin.
Take heed to the past, not just yours
learn from everybody’s.
He didn’t die for nothing,
Look at the path he took.
Do you wanna go that route?
Believe someone will tell your story too?
Or, do you want to tell your own?
You have a choice.
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 11
From Prisoner to Worker
to Full Participation:
Getting to the Root of Workforce Development
KIMBERLY
WESTCOTT
PHD, JD, MSW
Associate
Counsel,
Community
Service Society
In the last few weeks, the public has received considerable news about our nation’s
punishment system. A recent U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) report (http://www.
bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p13.pdf)
placed
the 2013 prison population at 1,574,700 –
an increase of 4,300 from 2012.1 This is
a modest rise, but one that belies the increasingly prevalent perception that United
States incarceration rates are systematically
declining. Significantly, the report suggested that policy changes adopted by several
states, reducing the number of parole violations and increasing the number of prison
diversion programs, are limited in reach. In
a New York Times article on the report, Dr.
Steven Raphael, an expert in criminal justice at the University of California, Berkeley, stated, “The existing reforms can only
take us so far.” This is particularly evident
when the existing reforms are contrasted
with the continual imposition of more life
and multi-decade sentences, which offsets
some of the other small gains.2
The U.S. DOJ publication followed the release of the National Academies’ comprehensive report (http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/_
images/NAS_report_on_incarceration.
pdf), The Growth of Incarceration in the
United States, a survey of the causes and
consequences of the 40-year incarceration
boom in the United States. The National
Academies publication provides useful statistical and demographic information. Dr.
Jeremy Travis, Chair of the panel that released the report, and President of John Jay
College of Criminal Justice, emphasized
12
that flawed policies, not escalating “crime,”
created the phenomenon of mass incarceration. At a conference convened to discuss
the National Academies report and issues it
raises, a steady refrain from practitioners
and advocates, including Judge Juanita
Bing Newton and Assembly Member Jeffrion Aubry, was the need to examine the
influence of race on the system, better articulate our values, and to take bold steps to
correct the resultant inequalities not simply
to draft more reports or engage in tepid reformism that will at best yield minor variations on the same criminal justice system.
We have reached the limits of traditional incremental prison reform and the time to act
is now. We must end antiquated practices
that perpetuate the separation of persons
with conviction histories from the broader
community of workers, and this requires
forging new alliances. We at the Community Service Society have been examining
these issues for some time. The following
is an example of a value shift and a new
approach that reflects meaningful change.
The Mason Tenders’ Navigation Program:
A Case Study
Although some segments of the union
movement have not always demonstrated a
commitment to inclusivity, bowing to racism in some instances, organized labor’s
historic contribution to the civil rights
movement is often underappreciated. It is
often over-looked, for example, that the fair
employment departments formed within
the United Auto Workers (“UAW”) and
Steelworkers are the early predecessors of
modern anti-discrimination commissions,
and how unions such as the UAW and
United Packinghouse Workers were at the
center of the legislative fights of the 1940s
for the first governmental fair employment
commissions. More recently, shifting demographics and the desperation of a growing swath of the American workforce for
support has led many unions to reach out
The Fortune News
to all workers as a strategy for recovery.
These efforts have borne fruit: for example, a recent report by the Economic Policy
Institute noted that in the New York City
area, unionized labor is now more racially
diverse than non-unionized labor. In New
York City between 2002 and 2011, African
Americans comprised 23.3 percent of all
employed persons, and made up 21.3 percent of the union construction workforce, in
contrast with 13.8 percent of the non-union
construction workforce.3
Unions have historically been the gatekeepers to a living wage, and today the
wage differential between many skilled
and semi-skilled trades and minimum wage
work is striking. In New York City, a first
year laborer’s apprentice represented by
the Mason Tenders District Council of
Greater New York & Long Island on the
way to becoming a journeyperson – a two
and a half to six-year process – can earn
$21.99 per hour with a total earnings package that includes health insurance pension,
annuity, and training amounting to $38.85/
hr. These wages increase each year as the
laborer gains experience, culminating in
the journeyman wage of $38.05 (and a total
earnings package equaling $62.79).4 The
benefits of union membership do not stop
with wages and benefits, however. The opportunity to earn a living wage, access to
quality health care benefits and vacation
pay, support in normalizing employment
conditions through collective bargaining
and grievance-handling, and the overall
environment of solidarity as a worker is
leagues apart from the experience of performing low-wage or off-the-books work
without representation.
In order to identify more skilled apprenticeship candidates and continue building
diversity in its membership, Construction
and General Building Laborers’ Local 79
of The Mason Tenders District Council, has
developed and piloted a new “Navigation”
program designed to expand opportunities
www.fortunesociety.org
From Prisoner to Worker to Full Participation (Cont.)
for the formerly incarcerated to participate
in skilled union apprenticeships. The Navigation program covers soup to nuts on becoming a successful apprentice, in addition
to connecting participants to the broader
work and social community of Local 79
members and contractors. Construction laborers perform demolition, erect scaffolds,
mix mortar, and, among other things, tend
to the general conditions of a construction
site. Graduates from Local 79’s apprenticeship program are doing remarkably well
both economically and in terms of their civic engagement. The Navigation program,
in existence since spring 2013, helps a prospective applicant navigate the process of
applying for the Laborer’s Apprenticeship
Program. Union members help applicants
register, prepare for their Apprenticeship
Program interviews, and begin the transition process towards union membership.
This is done through a series of engaged
classroom-style presentations and discussions that introduce applicants to the ideas
of apprenticeship, laborers’ work, and active union membership. Once in the Apprenticeship Program, participants receive
three weeks of free (but unpaid) in-class
training, and are then referred to receive
“field” training on job sites, which basically
consists of paid work (at the rates described
above) under the supervision and guidance
of Local 79 journey-workers. The full apprenticeship program ultimately involves a
total of 288 hours of in-class training, and
4,000 hours of paid work in the field as apprentices, after which participants graduate
into full journey-worker status, with the
goal of having successful careers as skilled
construction craft laborers.
Acculturation to apprenticeship and advance knowledge of the recruitment process – both provided by the Navigation
program – is important. The recruitment
call, now computerized, is complicated. It
begins when the NYS Department of Labor
(DOL) announces on its website that certain unions are accepting applications, usually for a 10-day period. For the Building
Laborers, the first 1,000 applicants (out of
an estimated 2,000 or more) who can get
through to register are then placed on a
NYS DOL list for interviews. During the
recent NYS DOL recruitments, the 1,000
slots were filled in about 20 minutes. The
Laborer’s Apprenticeship Program offers
interviews to all 1000 who register, and, in
turn, accepts up to 100 people for enrollment in classes of 20-25 people, who then
promptly start the Apprenticeship Program
and its three-week initial training.
The Navigation program has had three
cohorts, September 2013, April 2014, and
October 2014. After the computer sign-up
process, the group continues to meet for
several months in preparation for participants’ interviews and hopeful acceptance as
new apprentices. The Navigation program
brings in speakers, including active Local
79 apprentices, union organizers, a college
professor, National Labor Relations Board
attorneys, and a job skills coach. They have
also had a Christmas party and a barbecue.
While the impetus for the program was to
recruit candidates from diverse, including criminal justice, backgrounds, Mike
Prohaska, Business Manager of Local 79
states, “we were also motivated to develop
good union members.” Prohaska continues, “In our experience, many of these guys
are very aware of this opportunity, take the
apprenticeship training process seriously,
and become some of our very best workers
and members.”
Outcomes have been extremely favorable.
The first September 2013 cohort identified
32 potential candidates and set them up at
computer stations; 14 would-be applicants
made it to the initial pool of recruits to
schedule for interview. Of this group, six
were accepted into the Mason Tenders’ Apprenticeship Program. The April 2014 cohort identified 27 participants, 12 of whom
were accepted into the Apprenticeship Program, nine of whom are still active, meaning they are either now in the three-week
initial training, or, in most cases, actively
working in the field as apprentices, with the
good pay, benefits, and on-the-job training
that apprenticeship entails. One Navigation
graduate is currently working on the Second Avenue subway construction project.
The Navigation program draws both men
and women. Four women are in the nowforming fall 2014 cohort.
This program is significant because it
moves beyond “reformism” and the type
of programming specifically developed for
the formerly incarcerated, to a movementstructural solution of expanding access to
work (as a “worker”) for all people. People
with conviction histories gain a vocation
and a new identity (“worker”) along with
solidarity and institutional support, having
come from another institution as “prisoner.”
There should be more intersections of this
kind.
Kimberly Westcott, PhD, JD, MSW, is Associate Counsel with the Community Service
Society, and an Adjunct Assistant Professor
at the Columbia University School of Social
Work and the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. For ore about
the Community Service Society visit
www.cssny.org
Seven of Fortune’s Green Jobs
Training graduates have successfully
completed both the Mason Tenders
Navigation Program, as well as the
Apprenticeship, and are now full
members of Local 79.
Endnotes
E. Ann Carson, Prisoners in 2013, U.S. Department of Justice, Office
of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics (September 22014,
NCJ 247282).
1
Erik Eckholm, “Number of prisoners in U.S. Grew Slightly in 2013,
Report Finds,” New York Times (September 16, 2014).
2
Lawrence Mishel, “Racial Underrepresentation in Construction: How
Do the Union and Nonunion Sectors Compare? Economic Policy
Institute, October 30, 2013.
3
Wage and Fringe Benefit Rates for Local 79 Laborers, July 1, 2014
to December 31, 2014, entered into by the Mason Tenders District
Council of Greater New York & Long Island and the Contractors Association of Greater New York.
4
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 13
From the David Rothenberg Center for Public Policy (DRCPP)
Understanding Gun Violence is the First Step to Prevention
MARLON
PETERSON
Director of
Community
Outreach
The Fortune
Society
This article was originally published in
The Crime Report on July 29, 2014.
Gakirah Barnes, 17, was gunned down in
a hail of bullets on an April afternoon in
Chicago’s South Side, bringing an end to a
young life that had seen several lifetimes’
worth of devastating violence.
It happened one week before Good Friday
of this year—the beginning of a weekend
plagued by five gun-related murders and
45 shootings throughout the Windy City.
Much has been written about Gakirah since
her execution—thought to be in retaliation
for the murder of a rival gang member just
two days before. (Gakirah, or “K I” as she
was known to her crew, the Fly Boys, is
thought to be the one who pulled the trigger.) Among the postmortems are condemnations, tributes, commentaries, and lamentations, offered by a variety of pundits eager
to make a political point about this young
woman’s tragic life.
One thing about Gakirah’s life is not in
dispute: she had become defined (and confined) by an escalating pattern of gun violence.
Two years earlier, 13-year old Tyquan Tyler, a family friend whom Gakirah adopted
as her baby brother, was killed by a stray
bullet from a gang-related shooting. Another teenaged family friend was murdered
the year before. Her father was shot to death
on Easter Sunday when she was only a year
old. These individual tragedies combined
savagely to thrust a young life into a course
of perpetuating violence that ended predictably.
Gakirah assumed the Twitter handle @tyquanassassin in what was designed to be
a homage to young Tyquan, and she became heavily involved in gang activity. In
her time on the streets, “Lil Snoop”—an14
other of Gakirah’s nicknames referencing
a character on the TV series The Wire—is
purported to have been involved in at least
a dozen gang-related homicides, including
the one that led to her assassination.
Some have looked at these events and deduced that a young woman’s death was
brought on by the utterly reckless lifestyle
she championed. In this case, they might
be right. But what if we undertake a more
thoughtful examination of the circumstances behind the taking of black lives by other
black people? What if we took a real look
at the experiences of our young black people and realized that black girls are being
killed, too?
According to the 2014 Kelly Report by
Congresswoman Robin L. Kelly of Illinois,
while black people represent only 13 percent of the nation’s population, they account
for 55 percent of all homicide victims.
An earlier report, titled “Black Homicide
Victimization in the United States: An
Analysis of 2011 Homicide Data, published
by the Violence Policy Center, found that
the homicide rate for black males was eight
times greater than that of white males. For
black females, three times that of their
white counterparts.
Perhaps more alarmingly, the report also
stated: “For homicides in which the weapon
used could be identified, 82 percent of black
victims were shot and killed with guns.”
There is no denying that a gun violence
crisis has laid siege to young black people
in America’s inner cities. And yet, we keep
employing the same failed strategies—
chiefly the “arrest as deterrence” model—to
try and combat this scourge.
A new approach is needed, and it begins
with a new understanding about the nature
of gun violence itself.
We will not see true progress in subverting the culture of violence in our inner cities until we acknowledge that those who
perpetuate the violence and those who are
harmed by it are really victims of the same
life traumas. A kneejerk reaction would be
to dismiss any notion that somehow equates
the victim of gun violence with one who
pulls the trigger. But look deeper.
The Fortune News
Gakirah Barnes didn’t begin her life as a
gangster with a gun in her hand. She was
the product of a violent society that shaped
her and ultimately led to her demise. This is
true of a generation of young black people
who are growing up in a culture of violence
in our inner cities.
Exacerbated by generational poverty, marginalization, racism, and their own bad decisions, young black males —and increasingly young black females—have been
conditioned to believe that gun violence
establishes power, secures protection, attains social acceptance, and makes up for
insecurities.
The result is a self-perpetuating cycle of
trauma that, when exposed to it at an early
age and repeatedly throughout one’s life,
becomes normal.
How else can you explain Shontell Brown’s
reaction to her daughter Gakirah’s death ...
“At least I don’t have to constantly worry
about what’s going to happen to her out on
the street no more,” she told a TV reporter
immediately after her child’s murder.
Ms. Brown’s warped sense of relief can
be summed up in two words: normalized
trauma.
With this new understanding about the underlying trauma that causes gun violence,
there is a movement in America’s cities to
combat it with a strategy of engagement before the violence takes place.
Interrupting violence by engaging those
who are deeply affected by normalized
trauma—those who might shoot and those
who might be shot—is not necessarily a
new concept; but it is one that is gaining
in both credibility and effectiveness. This
approach has its roots in the Cure Violence model (http://cureviolence.org/) first
developed in Chicago in the early 2000s
(also known as Operation CeaseFire) and
has been replicated in cities throughout the
country. At its core is the philosophy that
gun violence should be studied and treated
like an infectious disease.
This is a hard pill for traditional law-andorder types to swallow.
However, society has come to the realization that it is more effective and cost-efwww.fortunesociety.org
White House Champion of Change
Reentry and Employment
ficient to treat drug addiction as a public
health issue than it is to punish it.
Similarly, we must also accept that it makes
more sense to prevent incidents of gun violence, provide treatment for high risk individuals, and change social norms. In other
words, to treat gun violence like the public
health crisis that it is.
An essential element to this disease-fighting strategy is to try and interrupt transmission—that is to stop potentially violent
conflicts before they escalate. Interruption
is achieved by having outreach workers on
the streets who identify and mediate potentially lethal conflicts in the community, and
who follow up to ensure that conflicts do
not reignite.
These interrupters are trained, culturally
appropriate activists who have a standing
and a stake in their communities. Many
are former gang members or formerly incarcerated individuals who are often better
prepared than the police at recognizing and
de-escalating a potentially violent situation.
Preventing retaliation is also a critical tactic in interrupting violence. Whenever a
shooting happens, interrupters immediately
get to work in the community and at local
hospitals where gunshot victims are taken
to cool down emotions and prevent retaliations.
Finally, anti-violence workers identify ongoing conflicts by talking to key people in
the community about ongoing disputes, recent arrests, recent prison releases, and other situations and use mediation techniques
to resolve them peacefully.
Until we recognize that gun violence begins long before the trigger is pulled, we
will never stop it from destroying our communities.
Addressing its underlying causes—poverty,
lack of education, discrimination, homelessness, easy access to guns, drugs, joblessness, fear and despair—is the only way
to prevent another Gakirah Barnes from
making headlines ... at either end of a gun.
with over 200 colleagues helping thousands
of people who have been involved in the
criminal justice system.
STANLEY
RICHARDS
Senior
Vice President
The Fortune
Society
On June 30, 2014 Fortune Senior
Vice President Stanley Richards was
honored at the White House as a
Reentry and Employment Champion
of Change. The following was written
for the White House Champions of
Change Blog.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/
champions/reentry-and-employment
I am honored to be selected as Reentry
and Employment Champion of Change
as there is nothing I believe in more than
our capacity for change. Everything I do is
based on the belief that change is possible.
Change in a person, change in a community,
change in a system.
I am confident change is possible
because I have seen it myself.
I dropped out of school in 9th
grade and spent my time on the
streets involved in crime and
drugs. As a teenager, I was
sent to Rikers Island, then later
ended up in state prison. I didn’t
think my life would ever be any
different. Drugs, arrests, prison,
is what I knew and was all I
thought I could be.
For change to happen, we must provide
systems of support. Education, employment
and family are all key. Education needs to
be available to all, currently incarcerated
or formerly incarcerated, and I have been
a strong advocate for increased educational
programs in our correctional facilities. I
support The Fortune Society’s education
department which consistently delivers
outstanding results and I work closely with
the David Rothenberg Center for Public
Policy (DRCPP) to improve education
policies locally and nationally. We must
provide access to jobs. Employment allows
people to rebuild lives, and The Fortune
Society’s workforce development and
employment service programs have helped
hundreds to find stable work with decent
wages. Finally, you need the support of
family. It can be your biological family, or
the family you make attending the programs
at The Fortune Society where 70% of the
staff have conviction or substance abuse
histories (like me). The support of people
close to you is crucial.
The Reentry and Employment Champions of Change with
This all changed when, after Attorney General Eric Holder
entering state prison, I was told I
should take classes to prepare for the GED.
I am proud to be a role model for those
I passed it on the first try and it was like
struggling with their experience in the
a new door had opened for me. I started
criminal justice system. In my 23 years
college classes while still in prison (being
of this work, I have found it is possible to
fortunate to have that now-discontinued
see the potential in anyone, often before
option) and finished my Associates degree
they see it in themselves. I have also been
in social science. After my release, I was
fortunate to witness the moment, that “a-ha”
hired by The Fortune Society as a counselor
moment, when someone’s self-perception
and began to help others make a change in
starts to shift, and real change begins.
their own lives. I am now the Senior Vice
President of The Fortune Society, working
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 15
Garnett Wilson
Recently Fortune lost a dear friend and group facilitator, Garnett “G” Wilson. We remembered Garnett and his 19 years of dedication to
Fortune at a memorial service on September 16, 2014. Friends, coworkers (current and former), family, and community members, all joined
together to read Garnett’s poetry and reflect on his powerful impact during his time with us. His ability to reach people, to help them change
for the better, was spoken of again and again. Fortune has created a poetry wall in honor of Garnett on the second floor of our Long Island
City, Queens offices. We will miss Garnett’s light here at Fortune, and his work will always inspire us.
You can donate to the Garnett Wilson Memorial Fund at www.gofundme.com/garnett
Can You Dig It?
by Garnett Wilson
Can U dig it ?
The deepness of life.
Can U dig it?
What’s up with the unnecessary strife!?
What’s the beef?
Why all the grief?
Win some you lose some;
You understand where I’m coming from;
Why cant we just get along?
Rodney King should have made a song;
I know there are a lot of haters on the
planet;
Haters is a street for Jealousy,
for those who don’t understand it;
Jealousy is the ultimate king of spoilers
Transforms loving relationships
into weekend brawlers
Jealousy is hating on another’s advances
oblivious to your opportunities,
missing all your chances;
16
This makes our days and nights miserable
building emotional walls
to avoid being vulnerable;
Walls with bricks of self-pity, anger and
deception
hiding our insecurities and low self-esteem
since conception;
Can U dig it?
The overwhelming need to be right;
Can U dig it?
Its the spark that ignited the fight;
What’s the beef?
Why all the grief?
Lack of tolerance for others views
justifies the destruction
caused by the weapons we use;
Those who feel that their way is the only
way,
are too rigid and controlling, that’s what I
say;
The Fortune News
Self-righteousness and “Holier than thou”
attitudes create fanaticism,
Some fanatics use guns and bombs
to express their criticism;
Even petty arguments in the “Hood”.
Guns are drawn, as some expect they
would;
Its this relentless quest for superiority,
Making others wrong proves their inferiority;
Can U dig it?
If so, you could be part of the new order,
The one that attempt to stave off the
slaughter;
The situation is already very grave,
will we ever learn how to behave?
Can U dig it?
If not, we all will dig it, A grave that is
Can U dig it?
www.fortunesociety.org
Center Stage
Fortune and The Public Theater
Fortune staff and clients in The Winter’s Tale in Central Park
The Winter’s Tale is a story of madness and redemption, two lands torn
apart by jealousy but reunited by love.
And, in September, it was told with passion, energy, and exuberance in
the second annual production of Public Works with cast members including clients, staff, and volunteers from The Fortune Society. In a partnership with The Public Theater, Fortune has been a part of Public Works
for two years with members being involved in the inaugural production
of The Tempest in 2013 as well as The Winter’s Tale.
This year, the Delacorte Theater in Central Park came alive with the
words of Shakespeare, the songs and music of the incomparable Todd
Almond, and the talent of over 200 people from around the city as they
provided three nights of entertainment to over 6,000 people. Fortune
had eight people in this year’s production, five of whom were featured
in their own scene, “What The People Saw.” Director Lear deBessonet
guided them all through the process of telling the story in a way that
made it accessible to everyone—even included Senator Chuck Schumer
and characters from Sesame Street.
Fortune looks forward to continuing its relationship with Public Works and to another successful production next September.
http://www.publictheater.org/Programs--Events/Public-Works/
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FORTUNE
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What do you want to
see more of in
The Fortune News?
email us at
info@fortunesociety.org
or write us at
Fortune News
C/O The Fortune Society
29-76 Northern Blvd.
Long Island City, NY 11101
Fortune staff and clients on stage with a cast of 200, including puppets from Sesame
Street.
www.fortunesociety.org
The Fortune News 17
29-76 Northern Boulevard
Long Island City, NY 11101
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IN THE NEXT ISSUE
QUESTION FOR OUR READERS
Aging: In prison and once released
How should our correctional system handle aging differently?