What a Difference an Open-Minded Employer Can Make!

By VOTE Members Julia Cass & Danena Williams

When Danena Williams came out of prison in March 2023 after serving 16 years of a 20-year sentence, she wanted to prove to herself, her friends, her family and the world that she was going to get it right. “I was young, 20, when I went to prison. I came home nowhere near that naïve girl I was then. I came home as an adult with education and ready to live life and achieve things and make up for the time that was lost.”

She was fortunate to get a place in VOTE’s transitional living facility for women- Diamond House – where she got support services and was able to live without paying rent for six months.

“It’s once you start job searching and apartment hunting that you run into roadblocks,“ she said. “Everybody wants to know: Are you a convicted felon? People don’t want to give you a chance because of your past. You want to start over and do right and be a productive citizen but you run into all these no, no, nos. It’s very discouraging.”

“It’s once you start job searching and apartment hunting that you run into roadblocks,“ she said. “Everybody wants to know: Are you a convicted felon? People don’t want to give you a chance because of