Sheena Meade
The Relief of Automatic Record Clearance for Black Communities
The Relief of Automatic Record Clearance for Black Communities
Sheena Meade
CEO, The Clean Slate Initiative
Readily available data support what we know — systemic issues within the criminal justice system disproportionately impact Black communities. From being arrested at higher rates to receiving harsher punishments, the legal system today is the result of longstanding inequities stemming from policies and practices that have led to decades of over-arresting and over-incarceration. However, even after the arrest or conviction Black communities carry a disproportionate burden of navigating the post-incarceration impacts.
Today, 70 to 100 million people in America have an arrest or conviction of some kind (The Sentencing Project, n.d.). That is about one in three adults, and nearly half of all Black adults in the U.S. have an arrest or conviction record (The Clean Slate Initiative, 2024). The consequences of having a record reverberate long after satisfaction of judgment and permeate through almost every aspect of an individual’s life after serving their sentence. For Black people, a criminal record can have heightened effects on their ability to attain life-sustaining opportunities for themselves and the people who depend on them.
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From harmful stigmas to being denied housing, jobs, access to education, and more, individuals seeking to rebuild their lives after an arrest or conviction must often navigate countless barriers — or approximately 44,000 collateral consequences (National Inventory of Justice, 2018). Employment opportunities become scarce as background checks pull individuals out of the running for meaningful employment. Quality housing becomes harder to obtain, as landlords often deny housing based on past convictions. Advancing education or attaining certain occupational licenses becomes difficult as a record makes meeting requirements seemingly impossible. Research shows that 94 percent of employers, 90 percent of landlords (Nelson, 2019), and 72 percent of colleges and universities use background checks to screen out applicants (Stewart & Uggen, 2020). These constant barriers perpetuate a cycle of poverty and inaccessibility that disproportionately impacts Black people, their families, and more broadly, their communities.
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The impact of a record on our communities is generational. Black Americans are more likely to live with a record for a multitude of reasons, which means Black children are more likely to have a parent with a record. Data shows that 11 percent of Black children have a parent with a record compared to 1.7 percent of white children and as parents are shut out from better opportunities, those who depend on them are as well (Vallas et al, 2021). Research also shows that children with parents who have been incarcerated are more likely to become involved in the legal system as well (Vallas et al, 2021). Having a record can have negative consequences that impact the socioeconomic status of families and create cycles of incarceration.
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The truth is that the pathway for an individual to change the trajectory of their life is not easily accessible. Even after an individual has served their sentence, met eligibility requirements, and so on, the process to clear their record and create a new start is inundated with hurdles and red tape that block millions of people from doing so. Studies show that even if an individual has earned the right, the record clearance process is so bogged down with bureaucratic measures that less than 10 percent of those eligible to get their record cleared actually complete the process (Prescott & Starr, 2019). Today, more than 30 million people are eligible to get their records cleared (Chien, 2020). That is more than 30 million people who have earned their second chance but are being denied the opportunity to contribute to their families, communities, the economy and so much more that work for everyone’s good.
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However, there is a solution: It is one that has already been proven to be successful and has already changed countless lives. At The Clean Slate Initiative, we advocate alongside partners across various industries for policies that automatically clear eligible arrest and conviction records across the U.S. — and it is working. So far, Clean Slate laws have been passed and signed into law in 12 states, creating a pathway for more than 14 million people to clear their records fully; and this work has the potential to be a catalyst to counter disparate impacts on Black communities. In the states that have passed Clean Slate legislation, over two million Black adults are now eligible for full record clearance, and over 2.5 million are eligible for full or partial clearance. These policies are vital to making second chances a reality for millions - but we are just getting started.
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If we can ensure Clean Slate laws pass in all 50 states, over four million Black adults would be eligible to receive full record clearance, and eight million Black adults with records would be eligible for full or partial record clearance. That means millions of people getting back to work, getting access to quality housing, pursuing educational opportunities, and disrupting a cycle of poverty and recidivism brought on by lack of opportunity.
As we strive to create a more just and equitable society around us, we must address issues that deeply plague our criminal justice system and disproportionately put Black communities at a disadvantage. Clean Slate policies are not just about record clearance. They are about creating pathways for individuals to be defined beyond their mistakes, contribute wholly to the future of their communities, and dismantle inequity models that further marginalize certain groups.
References
Chien, C. (2020). America's Paper Prisons: The Second Chance Gap. Michigan Law Review, 519-611.
National Institute of Justice, "National Inventory of the Collateral Consequences of Conviction," November 13, 2018, nij.ojp.gov:
https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/national-inventory-collateral-consequences-conviction
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Nelson, A. (2019). (rep). Broken Records Redux: How Errors by Criminal Background Check Companies Continue to Harm Consumers Seeking Jobs and Housing. National Consumer Law Center. Retrieved from https://www.nclc.org/resources/report-broken-records-redux/.
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Prescott, J. J., & Starr, S. B. (2019). Expungement of Criminal Convictions: An Empirical Study. Harv. L. Rev., 133, 2460.
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Stewart, R., & Uggen, C. (2020). Criminal Records and College Admissions: A Modified Experimental Audit. Criminology, 58(1), 156-188.
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The Clean Slate Initiative. (2024). “Population Estimates to Maximize Policy Impact: The Clean Slate Initiative Methodology for Estimating State Populations with a Record.“ Available at: cleanslateinitiative.org/data-dashboard.
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The Sentencing Project. (n.d.-b). Americans with Criminal Records. https://www.sentencingproject.org/app/uploads/2022/08/Americans-with-Criminal-Records-Poverty-and-Opportunity-Profile.pdf
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Vallas, R., Dietrich, S., & Avery, B. (2021). (rep.). A Criminal Record Shouldn’t Be a Life Sentence to Poverty. Center for American Progress. Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/article/criminal-record-shouldnt-life-sentence-poverty-2/.