Businesses need to hire ex-convicts
At least one prison official is advocating for ex-convicts, calling for businesses to hire them as a way to break the cycle of crime in the community.
Walter Barrett, Rehabilitation Coordinator at His Majesty’s Prison, used the recent launch of the Anti-Crime Summit and Youth Rally to issue a passionate plea for the territory to stop shutting out people who have already paid their debt to society.
“For those of us who have business places — stop shutting down people because they were in prison,” Barrett told the gathering. “You need to give people an opportunity to get reintegrated into society the right way. If you keep telling them no, you are actually pushing them to end up in prison again. They’re going to find a way to survive.”
Barrett described crime as a formula where “opportunity plus threat equals crime,” stressing that not all offences are committed by hardened criminals. “Everybody that commits a crime is not a criminal. Some are driven by circumstances and threats they felt forced to confront,” he said.
His remarks come as the BVI faces a worrying surge in serious crime, including murders, gun violence, and gang-related activity. Police have repeatedly raised alarms about the increasing involvement of young people, some barely in their teens, in criminal acts.
Inside the prison, Barrett said the trend is playing out in real time. “The youngest person incarcerated is just 13 years old — and he may be up there for a very long time,” he revealed, adding that some juveniles have spent multiple birthdays locked in a cell.
The official warned that without a united effort involving families, churches, schools, and businesses, the problem will only deepen. He urged the territory to prepare pathways for rehabilitation and reintegration before inmates are released, to give them a genuine chance to rebuild their lives.
“This is something on my heart,” Barrett said. “We must work along with the incarcerated, even before they come out so that when they do, it’s an easy transition back into society.”
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Hire one on Talking Points
Businesses in the BVI are already carrying more than their fair share of bureaucratic red tape telling them how they should operate. The last thing we need is to place yet another burden on their backs. If the Government were to use the people’s tax dollars to give these men and women a proper start by putting them to work — cutting bush, keeping our communities clean, helping in Public Works, and other beautification projects — I do not believe anyone would object. That would be their first true entry back into the world of work, and it would serve both them and the wider community.
@ business burden
Am so agreeable with your post. Many years ago transitioning to work place from prison might have been a possibility. Now, it’s really not,after look in at the crime committed at these youth, because of hardship experienced by their self and families,businesses are reluctant to giving chances, and you cannot blame them,protection is their best weapon.
Your suggestion make valuable sense.the government need to hire them at entry levels train them and allow them to take anger management classes often ,this will help them become agent of change. But government cannot throw 250 K party, while its citizens are crying for food.
Pastor Barrot, what might work in the nineteen century, will not work in the twenty first century. Everyone is protecting themselves from the vipers mentality. You bite me once you will not bite me twice.
I love that you took it a step further and actually laid out a process for re entry. I hope you are in a position to get something like that executed or at least know someone in a position that could influence such a decision. Perhaps a partnership with the Minister of social development and Minister Works and communication.
@ business burden
Thanks for your recommendation on the topic.
While there is not a single Caribbean country ,that I know of which has implemented fully plans to reduce recidivism, Barbados is making strides at the Glandery prison on recidivism.
. Transitioning prisoners to community life will take plans and actions,actions that government will question until they feel comfortable about it. While it might be a social issue, governor is the one to give the green light, nothing can happen without his approval.
Then Implementation of a five /ten year plan has to be broken down to stages with monitoring eyes of who , when, where,how and why. When the goal is set with the time line the objectives will also be set to analyze the best possible outcomes/results by a specific time span with consideration of evaluation to check for deviations at every stage.
This wil help those involved to document behavior patterns. As some prisoners behavioral patterns will give indications if they are on track or heading back to the HMP cell, some know they are been watched and so they behave in a manner of doing the right things. this can complicate the process and put the project in jeopardy .
However, those who study, law,psychology,sociology,physio- social behaviors knows exactly what the key areas in the project really are,so they can implement the next level to stop the deviation.
But a prisoner transition into workforce life has to start years before expulsion and the stigmatic attitude of community has to change,if not the work becomes more difficult.
I believe the education project at HMP is the right way to start in empowering their mind of the prisoners, next is finding employment for them to face their realities of accountability and responsibility.
But it must start with the government departments to employ them.this give a sense of acceptance and ease tension to know some of their families and friends work within the government offices.
“Everybody that commits a crime is not a criminal.”
What?
Im sorry sir, but that’s the literal definition of a criminal.
These innocent criminals done show their intentions / a D inviting them into your business place is setting yourself up for them to do an inside job on you business, because some of them are going to create a way to RIP you off and get away with it / some may not do that , but how would know who the good ones are ?
Lets consider the “Criminal/s” that were working for a specific station, the young lady offered them work in a time where the young ppl are complaining about jobs, trusted them, they smile in her face and socialized daily with her, im sure she legitimately would have looked out for them if they said they needed help, but instead, they plotted against her and she ended up losing a beloved family member over their foolishness. Tell that prison official to have them work for him then. NONESENSE.
while i agree ppl deserve second chances in life and some are truly rehabilitated through the consequences of their actions, no one person can or should tell someone who to hire in THEIR business, and around their assets. send them to the departments that require manual labour, let them go out and do hard work for their community. Because i gaurantee no thief gettin hired to man anybody’s cash register!
or create jobs for convicts who finish and need a step back on the right foot with straigh forward jobs to build job history
UK PLEASE save us from this idiot. SOON
In this community, the word criminal gets thrown around too loosely. It don’t even make sense trying to advocate jobs for ex-convicts or talk about “second chances” because the reality is once somebody is arrested here, they’re branded for life. Nobody stops to ask what really happened. Nobody looks at the fact that sometimes it’s just a simple mistake, a split-second decision, or even being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some people get caught up in situations they didn’t even know were unfolding right in front of them, and still, they’re labeled the same as someone who deliberately set out to do wrong. In this community, guilty by association is treated the same as guilty by action. And once that label is stamped on you, it never comes off. That’s the truth of how people see it and that’s the problem. So Mr Barrett thanks for trying to help but it’s just the harsh reality
From a criminal justice professional perspective. In the legal sense, committing a criminal offence does not, does not automatically make someone a criminal. The speaker should have elaborated on this to his audience when speaking. In any event, when an individual commits a criminal act or offense, they only become a “criminal” after being formally charged, prosecuted and convicted by a court of law.
In committing an offense, an individual can break a criminal law by committing an act or omission that is prohibited by the penal code. In a criminal prosecution if the police believe a crime has been committed, they may arrest and charge the individual. Then the case is prosecuted. If an individual is found guilty in court, either by pleading guilty of being convicted by a judge or jury, they are then considered a criminal. A Criminal Record is part of the individual criminal record and can have significant consequences. I want to believe that not all offenses lead to conviction. It is also important to remember that not all allegations of criminal activity lead to a conviction and Investigations may not result in charges, or the case may be dismissed or result in an acquittal. Life is real. cjp