THIS IS AN AWFUL IDEA – AT 9:20 A.M. ET:  One of the most disappointing aspects of the civil rights movement has been the ignoring of real social pathologies within the black community.  Some African American leaders have been forthright about these problems, but most have not.  The result has been that the problems that cause other problems go unsolved...often with the enthusiastic consent of white leftists who specialize in giving terrible advice to blacks.

Now comes one of the worst ideas I've seen:

GARY, INDIANA – Black males have higher rates of incarceration and of repeat offenses that land them back in jail or prison, statistics show.

Changing that dynamic could begin with expunging their criminal records.

That was the consensus of a discussion Thursday sponsored by the Gary Commission on the Social Status of Black Males in conjunction with the East Chicago-based group Working Outside the Walls and an alliance of grassroot activists.

The panel discussion brought together activists, religious leaders, law enforcement officers and area legislators to talk about a possible Expungement Summit in Northwest Indiana. Expunging the criminal records of juveniles and adults would help them find jobs and turn their lives around, said Bennie Muhammed, GCSSBM executive director.

Dorothy Brown, clerk of the Cook County (Ill.) Circuit Court, outlined how she has organized expungement summits across the state line.

"It's important for all our communities because we all have the same problem," she said.
Brown recommended that all agencies working with ex-offenders help organize and participate in an expungement summit. That includes police departments, the courts, lawyers, the public defenders office and the prison review board, Brown said.

COMMENT:  Huh?  Where do I begin?  First, the majority of black males don't commit crimes.  So what are these characters saying to them?  You're suckers?  You're fools?  Commit a crime and the record will be expunged, so have a good time like the others. When the record of the criminal looks exactly like the record of the law-abiding man, the good guy loses.

Second, society has a right to be warned before it employs someone with a bad past.  Now, true, that certainly holds an offender back.  But he should have thought of that before committing the crime.

Third, procedures can be put in place for expunging the records of many offenders who've gone straight for a certain period of time.  In fairness, even those advocating expungement agree that certain crimes, like murder, must never be expunged.

But casual expungement teaches no moral lesson and sends the message that crime pays, which, unfortunately, it often does.

Watch this "expungement" movement carefully.  The "excuse society" produces nothing.

November 19, 2010