By Willette Benford*
As a person who has lived the challenges faced by formerly incarcerated people who are trying to rebuild their lives, I know our fight isn’t simply about giving people second chances, it’s about removing the systemic barriers that keep many of us from any chance at all.
Last year, Heartland Alliance released a ground-breaking report, “Never Fully Free”, that documented how 3.3 million adults live with what are called permanent punishments, systemic barriers that keep formerly incarcerated individuals from achieving success. As of today, there are still 1,189 permanent punishments in Illinois, limiting our human rights and restricting access to the crucial resources we need to rebuild our lives, like employment, housing, and education.
For far too long, formerly incarcerated people have been locked out of housing because of their past. This is something I experienced first-hand. After I was released from prison, I began to rebuild my life. I found good work, and successfully completed interim housing programs. I was taking all the right steps, but I was still told that I was ineligible for long-term affordable housing because of my past conviction. At that time, my conviction was over 25 years old.
Illinois Public Housing Authorities were never required to keep records of criminal backgrounds for those who applied for housing. And yet, for decades, people have been denied safe housing based on their record alone. There was no due diligence, no interview, just denial.
Even as a full-time employee with the city of Chicago, somehow a two-decade-old conviction meant I was not good enough for stable housing. Experiencing such systemic injustice inspired me to testify and fight for the Just Housing Amendment, passed by the city council in 2019. It is what inspires me to serve as a governing board chair of Heartland Alliance’s campaign against permanent punishments.
Today, I’m proud to share that at least one of the barriers keeping people from affordable housing has been removed. Thanks to the advocacy efforts of Heartland Alliance and the Restoring Rights and Opportunities Coalition of Illinois, Governor Pritzker recently signed the Public Housing Access bill into law, formalizing a more just system across all state Public Housing Authorities and removing many of the barriers these institutions used to keep people from obtaining a home.
Now, Public Housing Authorities in Illinois are required to use individualized assessments for formerly incarcerated applicants. The law also creates statewide standards that limit the look-back period for background checks to 6 months – and prohibits the consideration of arrest records and findings of not guilty, juvenile records, expunged records, and sealed records.
Imagine having served your time and discovering you’re still not fully free. This new law brings accountability and hope, giving countless Illinoisans equitable consideration for secure housing.
But there are still over a thousand barriers keeping people from safety and success. If we truly believe in rehabilitative, restorative justice, we must remove these permanent punishments once and for all.
*Willette Benford serves as a governing board chair of the Heartland Alliance’s initiatives to combat permanent punishments.
