What is restorative justice? It’s defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as, “a way of dealing with crime that emphasizes taking responsibility for the effect of your crime on others, and trying to do something that makes things better for the victims.”
This is a concept that should sound familiar to those who have been following the work of RecycleForce. Our work gives men and women reentering our communities an opportunity to give back to society – they get a second chance and an opportunity to regain their dignity.
RecycleForce and other reentry and restorative justice focused organizations cannot serve everyone who needs help to rise above a life of crime, panhandling or addiction. We need the help of local government agencies and community leaders to communicate to people who need our services that help might be just around the corner.
Recently, Mayor Hogestt and the Department of Public Works (DPW) utilized the job placement services of our partner, Keys to Work, to staff the City’s spring cleaning efforts. The men and women hired to help DPW clean up our parks and streets are trained by RecycleForce, and would not have found this great employment opportunity if it wasn’t for the open and regular communications between our organization and City officials.
Thanks to the relationship that RecyleForce and Keys to Work have with the City and the many other nonprofit organizations, companies willing to hire our clients, corrections officers and faith based organizations we are able to establish a network flush with resources, ideas, and a desire to help the thousands of men and women reentering our communities find a pathway to restorative justice.
We are grateful for our local City officials and their effort to keep our communities safe and clean, and for allowing RecycleForce and small job placement agencies like Keys to Work to help serve everyone in Indianapolis.