Second Chances 

• Help people in your community in practical ways, like volunteering at a halfway house or helping someone get a job.

• Change your language to reflect human dignity instead of using labels like “felon,” “convict,” or “offender.”

• Press lawmakers to address unreasonable laws that hold people back.

• Support second chances all month with the help of our social media toolkit.

Currently, 70 million individuals in America have a criminal record and as a result, face nearly 44,000 legal barriers to achieving success.

These restrictions make it difficult for individuals to find work, housing, education and other everyday necessities needed to reach their full potential and are not always clearly tied to public safety.

When we extend second chances to people with a criminal record, we afford them the opportunity to be productive, contributing members of our communities. Send a letter to Congress today asking them to remove legal barriers for individuals with a criminal record who have faced their consequences.

Every person has dignity and potential. But one in three American adults has a criminal record, which limits their access to education, jobs, housing, and other things they need to reach that potential.