On our own
Three un-related reports were recently published that collectively reflect the common frustrations persons forced to register share. They amplify the simple message that whatever gains are sought, they will only come by fighting the fight together.
The CATO Institute just published their Human Freedom Index which compares liberty and freedom country by country. The categories covered convey the ability to live freely within one’s society. Freedom is often a concept under-valued and under appreciated for many who have so much of it they take it for granted. As imagined, the US scores fairly well for freedom relative to other countries.
However, the Index is blind to uniquely American challenges. No hit is taken for the disenfranchisement of the right to vote of millions of felons. The freedom of movement, the right to live where so desired, the right to assemble, and most specifically, the right to know that new laws with new punishment schemes won’t be passed each year affecting those with prior convictions are freedoms a person forced to register never feels or never experiences in this country.
In fact, it is very hard to be a person forced to register and reconcile that the US ranks high in freedom relative to other countries. These inconsistencies in the rule of law remain the most vexing.
Secondly, the FBI recently published an annual compendium of hate crimes. This report categorizes all hate crimes into 6 neat sections. State and local governments voluntarily report data. Not all districts report and some track data differently so a degree of formatting must occur to fit into the pre-set buckets that are reported.
No hate crimes of persons forced to register exist in this data. No category exists to collect this data. If only these statistics were used to evaluate if hate crimes towards persons forced to register existed, it suggests none exist or happen.
Lastly, The Capitolist reported on the Florida Department of Child and Family Services’ October Monthly report which stated its hotline response times had grown to 58 minutes.
The Director was quoted as saying a new software and response system had been implemented. Staff training and familiarization had adapted slower than hoped, but that progress is now being seen. Verbal statements suggested holds were averaging only 34 minutes just two months later.
Deeper reviews of the charts in the October report suggests unstable response time to urgent calls have been the norm since 2021. Good performance has happened infrequently and trending has clearly been towards bad performance. The same bad trending exists for those so frustrated by wait times they hang up.
For every political grandstand that justifies new “tough on sex offender” laws, the antidote is being more responsive to calls alleging and preventing abuse. The “we are doing this for the kids” line only resonates true when given the chance to actually help kids, help actually exists.
Together these three reports make clear that persons forced to register aren’t having their restrictions measured and compared globally; that hate crimes against PFRs are not measured relative to other hate crimes; and that when given a chance to provide real help to those who need the effort is middling at best.
Confirmation bias is seeking data to prove a prior belief. It is hard not to be ensnared in this trap when the evidence seems abundant.
CATO Institute Human Freedom Index
i recently moved from Florida to a mis western state where i presented my paperwork to register. after sending my case to the proper authorities i received a letter from the states attorney stating that because of my charges i was not required to register in this state. (i framed the letter) i tell you this for 2 reasons. being off the registry and having no restrictions fees like i have been released from solitary confinement after 10years and second that Florida places people on the registry for things other states deem far less punitive. The problem is Florida is for life and that’s where i caught my charge so if someone pulls a background check it will still show me on the registry in Florida. I think they have made so many things against the law in Florida so that they can justify the funding and positions some politicians and legal figures hold. I felt i was under surveillance 24/7 in Florida i now feel like a human being again. if a lot of you do not like the position you are in down there change it, because we all know Florida will not only not get better when it comes to registered offenders but it most likely as we see on a daily basis get worse. More living restrictions more hiring restrictions death for sex offenses and on and on
Hello
I am so happy for you, is it at all possible to know the State you moved to?
I am facing a failure to register in indiana based on Florida requirement which I never had a conviction in Florida for anything but had moved my probation to Florida 20 years ago and finished it back in 2007 and left the country for 12 years and came back to Indiana where my original conviction was from 1998.. they couldn’t charge me based on indiana law because I was done with my 10 years registration so they are using Florida requirement that was based on Indiana conviction to begin with to do it ..
Florida is the worst State in the Country for many reasons and especially the Registry..
We need to stop crying and start fighting we have nothing to loose..
My Feelings in few words..
God bless the oppressed and prosecuted everywhere..
Peace.
Want some informative reading? Let me strongly suggest 2 books.
1. “On Tyranny: 20 Lessons From the 20th Century” By Timothy Snyder, Professor of History at Yale University.
2. “How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them” By Jason Stanley, the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University.
Outstanding works both and in many parts very relevant to our situation.
[moderated]
Oh yes it’s a hate crime; I was personally told that” I have a 45 for you”. Now this was one part of the conversation , the second part was” you talked so smooth about how alcohol and drugs affected your life”.” And how your life has improved once you had a handle on your addiction ” .
Funny how I was an inspiration to him and he wanted what I had found, only to then despise and hate me enough to want to shoot me in the head.
If we are looking to persuade the public, rather than complain among ourselves, then I would ask that we be a little more careful in our claim that sex offenders are victims of hate crime. We make it sound as if we are blurring the generally accepted definition of hate crime. But that definition includes, among other things, definitions of protected classes, none of which involve past conviction for a sexual offense.
We could ask the public to consider protecting sex offenders as a class, but that is less likely to fly than simply raising awareness of the real-world consequences of registration, without resorting to loaded terms such as hate crime.
It may be that registrants are disproportionately targeted as victims of crime, but anecdotally, the most common such crime, judging from FAC’s own news feed, is wire fraud, not hate crimes.
A hate crime occurs when a perpetrator commits a crime that is motivated specifically by hatred of the class to which the victim belongs. Even hypothetically treating sex offenders as a protected class, do we know of any instances in which someone was targeted as a victim specifically because the perpetrator was motivated by hatred of persons on the registry generally? Yes, we do, and as far as we know, they happen about as often as child abductions by strangers— in other words, not often. Those crimes are very serious, but FAC generally opposes public policy that is based individual instances of severe crime (Megan’s Law, Adam Walsh Action, etc).
Well said Jacob. Well said.
“Even hypothetically treating sex offenders as a protected class,”
We’re not a “class” or a “group>” We’re marginalized subset of individuals that ONLY share similarity through the label.
When people on here refer to us as a group or a class, that only helps the enemy by bolstering their “public safety” narrative and all the rhetorical framing and fear mongering spin that goes with it. A “class” our “group” also implies that we’re all share the same deviant pathology.
We’re not vying for a spot in the Oppression Olympics. Society simply does not care we’re being treating worse than garbage. You cannot change minds on this subject through education, statistics or reasoning because hate and emotion will always override their executive functioning.
Although it’s slow, some awareness of the U.S.’ revolting human rights record is trickling through international consciousness. Freedom House also ranks freedom in the world and we’re at the very bottom of “free” developed countries on their index.
I still say that the remedy for any bout of hysteria is a good, solid slap in the face.
There are about 1 million of us in the USA right now.
…Just sayin’
On of the things about this registry really bothers me and that is the fact that I own my home in Florida and have no intentions of moving.. I do go to New York and Pennsylvania in the summer for a few weeks. But other than that, I am here at my home..
Why do they have to visit my home 4 times a year. I can understand renting or being homeless. But I’m not going anywhere.
I made a couple of trips to New York this year and upon returning I had visits from the Sheriffs.
Don’t get me wrong they are always polite to me, But it seems a waste of resources for them to be here that much.
Thank you for letting me vent.
From some of the comments are we actually on our own. Last night I was in a zoom group on “Women against registry” listening to a speaker from Restorative Justice https://ampersandsrj.org/ and its groups like them plus FAC and other groups even Safer Virginia in my area that want to erase much of this registry.
Many or American’s don’t care how all this sex registry is played out even those after prison that are on lifetime status for a “quote” sex offense. Where has human humanity shifted to today. Is putting a lifetime status on another coming out of prison or probation helping to solve this stigma?
While I plead guilty because are not we all guilty (ex: sin factor), and yes I was guilty for even being caught up in all this deceptive registry practice. So if its a matter of cleaning up one’s act or we feel that he or she is not ready to be free than who is being the slave in all this sex registry ordeal of the before and after the fact or are authorities hearts corrupted and have their own cross to bear.
What a governmental house divided. Does not true moral ethics and principals play a part in any of this registry.
I’ll say one more thing, and I hope that you can understand this (and, perhaps, read between the lines).
Every time I see the persecution from our own government of persons who have only acted human, I am reminded of that famous line from that 1968 epic movie called “Planet of the Apes”.
Charlton Heston finally turned to them, when he had had enough (!), and he growled, “Take your stinking paws off of me you damn dirty ape!”
You know many of us on the registry should be thankful that we all have a bit of help and support to fight this battle of the sex registry. Yes even some of the women that actually had some type of physical rape encounters are having second thoughts as to much of this. Are we on our own? In many ways we are if we don’t stand up to big brother to coin a phrase.
Much of this registry is a type of retributive justice with a type of lifelong hold and very evil in many respects in these Tier Classification. While the bible is the basic blueprint government doesn’t seem to recognize the Good book and abuse more. Was not the slave trade an abuse of one humanity and dignity.
Even these men that go to prison have a right to be free after their sentence and these teens & adults being set up via this internet are taken down the road. While the good news is Jesus never intended for one to be set up like this or who it being played out.
While its sad on governments part to play this game the good book never intended it that way and that is the corruption in government so we are not alone if one has an ounce of christian ethics. So wake up and stand up. (i, e, post this is need be)
Hopefully this qualifies as a hate crime. https://fox59.com/news/indycrime/anderson-arsonist-told-police-he-targeted-child-molesters-homes-court-docs-reveal/amp/
I wonder who provided the list.
The above qualifies as a crime, hence the arrest.
And it’s an example of how the registry can result in more crime rather than less and therefore must be fought.
The registry creates more targets for criminals. That’s message that we undermine by labeling this incident what it is not. It does not and will not meet the public’s generally-accepted definition of hate crime, nor does it need to.
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=sex+offender+news&docid=13940891191947&mid=62C882E4A8B1CEBCE4C662C882E4A8B1CEBCE4C6&view=detail&FORM=VDRVSR&ajaxhist=0