ODA Blog

Whatever your stand on Black Lives Matter, this much is certain . . .

Black Drugs Matter.
   

Of the many destructive myths about the poor, the most pervasive and culturally harmful is that poor people do not want to work.  Ironically, it's just the opposite:

Most impoverished households include many workers who hold multiple jobs.  When your pay rate is less than $10 an hour, it takes a lot of hours to make rent each month.  Part-time jobs at fast-food restaurants and convenience stores, coupled with odd jobs like babysitting, snow-shoveling, and trash-hauling are staples in America's poor neighborhoods.  In truth, America's poorest people are overwhelmingly some of the nation's hardest workers. 

And yet the ugly stereotype of the lazy and irresponsible loafer persists on talk radio, cable news, and social media.  Knowing better, Open Door America remains committed to helping worthy individuals and families find living-wage employment that lifts them out of poverty, ends their need for charity and public assistance, and sets them on a path towards sustainable life success.

In keeping with this commitment, Open Door America is pleased to announce its newest jobs partnership with the Maryland Manufacturing Extension Program (MDMEP).  MDMEP is at the forefront of a national movement to link workers of all skill levels -- including entry-level workers -- with the nation's 253,000 small and medium-sized manufacturing companies.  For scores of impoverished Maryland families in 2016 and beyond, this partnership promises to be uplifting and life-changing.  MDMEP represents the best in public-private partnerships . . . the kind of partnerships that can provide real solutions to America's growing poverty crisis.

Finding a good job can be tough under the best of circumstances.  When you have a criminal record, it can be virtually impossible.  For a nation drowning in a sea of red ink, the time has come for employers to look beyond one answer box in the hiring process.  Employers willing to hire ex-offenders hold the key to reducing America's exorbitant criminal justice costs, shrinking public assistance budgets, and most importantly, restoring families and communities across the nation.