HEALTH Pathways Program Promotes Fourth Cohort By Sam P.K. Collins WI Contributing Writer @SamPKCollins The nearly two dozen young men who completed the fourth round of the Pathways Program spent nine weeks developing as professionals, learning essential life skills, and reflecting on past mistakes, all while bonding with one another and their program facilitators at the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE) in Northeast. The 22 newly promoted Pathways ambassadors received words of wisdom and encouragement at their ceremony from representatives of ONSE, Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency, and the Executive Office of the Mayor. In their
remarks, some officials, like ONSE Director Del McFadden, explained how self-reliance and family support will go hand in hand. “You’re being applauded for your accomplishments. This is one step of many and there’s a long way to go,” McFadden said in his congratulatory message to the group of young men during the Dec. 13 ceremony at Carmine’s Italian Restaurant in Northwest. That morning, several family and community members poured into a spacious auditorium to celebrate the graduates, each dressed in neatly fitted suits and most sporting neatly twisted locs. The three-hour event culminated a process where the young men, at one point considered most likely to be a victim or perpetra-
tor of violent crime, reflected deeply on the path they wanted to forge through a business plan competition and other introspective activities. In his remarks, McFadden reminded the young men that their work had only just begun, especially since they had been in the process of securing six months of employment subsidized by ONSE with the possibility of future advancement. “Worry about yourself. Commit to yourself. Challenge yourself,” he implored his Pathways ambassadors. “Give it to yourself. You must focus on the individual and the foundation. Family, we need you all to stay on these guys, press them out when they’re turning in the wrong direction. It’s our job to get them where they need to be.” The Pathways Program came into fruition through the D.C. Council’s unanimous passage of the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results (NEAR) Act. That legislation, introduced by D.C. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie (D-Ward 5), implemented a holistic, public health-focused means of reducing violent crime. ONSE, a Northeast-based agency created by the NEAR Act, manages the Pathways Program and other community-based activities aimed at providing participants with the tools for self-sufficiency. Last month’s promotion brought the number of Pathways ambassadors — those who’ve completed the
5 Tony Lewis (left) and Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White (right) with Pathways Program recent graduate Keyonna Jones. (Courtesy photo/ONSE Facebook grab)
Pathways program since its inception — to more than 80. Data on ONSE official site says more than 90 percent of Pathways Program graduates have avoided criminal involvement. This fiscal year, a $365,000 allocation by Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) has paved the way for participants’ wage increases. During the nine weeks, the young men, whose ages ranged from 20 to 35, spoke about their trauma and past losses to a mental wellness professional commissioned for weekly
Federal Prison Inmate Fights for Early Release
5 A 2018 photo of Antone White at United States Penitentiary, Hazelton in West Virginia. (Courtesy photo/Unjustly Sentenced)
22 - JANUARY 16 - 22, 2020
By Sam P.K. Collins WI Contributing Writer @SamPKCollins For nearly 30 years, Antone White has spent much of his time in the federal prison system challenging a life sentence handed to him. In the most recent leg of his journey, he reached out to national organizations and the legions of Black lawyers and law students across the country. In doing so, White said he aspires to pivot their collective attention to his case and that of other incarcerated people he said never experienced due process, as it has been defined in the U.S. Constitution. This counts as part of what’s now known as the Unjustly Sentenced Campaign. “No judges, nor any official of the law [is] supposed to wield power to presume a person guilty of a crime to the effect to [con-
sider] a punishment without due process when life, liberty or poverty are at stake, unless the accused has waived [their] constitutional right to face a ‘trial by jury,’ and in its stead elect to proceed a ‘trial by judge,’” White recently wrote in a letter intended for Black newspaper publishers across the United States. In 1993, White and another man, both of whom authorities alleged to be leaders of the First Street Crew, received 26 counts in an indictment, 10 of which belonged to White. After a four-month trial, five of White’s charges, including first-degree murder and use of a firearm, were dropped. A jury, however, found White guilty of racketeering and conspiring to distribute more than 50 grams of crack cocaine, relying only on prosecution witness testimony and the mention of an obstruction of justice charge
not included in the indictment. “It is an anathema of justice when a criminal defendant faced their right to a jury, and the jury had determined the factual bases of the offense(s); only later to have those facts ignored — during sentencing,” White wrote. “And, even worse, it is an extreme menace of justice when a judge accounts for the charges that the jury found not to be facts, to be [actually] factual, which blatantly, attributes a disregard for the purpose of a jury to stand a protector and arbiter between the government and criminal defendant.” Since the fall of 2018, White has written two articles and three letters about the federal sentencing guidelines that prosecutors and judges use to impose harsh sentences for alleged crack cocaine
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events touted as wellness hour. They also sharpened their financial literacy, practiced conflict resolution techniques, completed community service projects at Anacostia Park and DC Central Kitchen, learned about opportunities in real estate, and launched a radio program. The young men also embraced a change of scenery with a white water rafting trip and hike through the park. With each experience, they grew closer and more candid about their frustrations attempting to gain employment with a criminal record. Such was the case for Pathways ambassador Deandre Providence, who entered the Pathways program after an unsuccessful job hunt. With improved interview skills and a new opportunity at the Department of Public Works (DPW) on the horizon, Providence said he remains set on advancing professionally over the next few years. “I always passed interviews but background checks would stop me. Someone wasn’t giving me a chance,” said Providence, a Northwest resident and DPW driver with goals of eventually holding a management position at the agency. “There were a few brothers going through the same thing. That leaves us with no other choice but to do [other] things for money,” he continued. “I did a lot of dumb stuff when I young before I had my kid. The older I got, my way of thinking changed. Everyone deserves a second chance, to prove that they’ve matured and grown.” WI
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