Did you know that Pioneer Human Services has in-jail treatment programs in Seattle and Spokane? At our King County Corrections-Based Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Treatment Program in the Norm Maleng Regional Justice....Read more >>
Our Mission: We are a social enterprise that partners with communities to transform society by honoring the humanity of people, reducing the impact of discriminatory mass incarceration and empowering people to live safe, healthy, productive lives through inspiration, affirmation and by overturning barriers.
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Labels Create Barriers
We believe that words are powerful and can be very stigmatizing and harmful when used to label our citizens who are or were formerly incarcerated. Let’s be clear, the individuals are first and foremost human beings!
We all need to remember that people released from prison or jail share common and descriptive names with everyone else in society to include: grandparent, parent, son and daughter, extended family member, friend, neighbor, colleague and employee. These are the only type of names that should ever be used to describe a person.
When talking about people who have been involved in the criminal justice system, here are labels to avoid and terms that are acceptable:
NEVER USE
|
Convict |
ex-Con |
Inmate |
ex-Inmate |
|
Offender |
ex-Offender |
Criminal |
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Pioneer Human Services is a nonprofit (501c3) social enterprise. One-hundred percent of our revenues are reinvested within the organization.
NEWS
The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco has announced new leadership designations and appointments to its Head Office Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2022. Our CEO, Karen Lee, was re-elected as one of the....Read more >>
The Social Change Leaders Podcast interviewed Karen Lee, CEO of Pioneer Human Services, for an interesting discussion on using a social enterprise to create jobs, generate wealth and provide second chances for justice-....Read more >>