August 24, 2019

Anna Murray 

The Board of Supervisors in San Francisco has proposed a new resolution. They promote people-oriented languages so that people who made mistakes in the past can keep one’s head up in the future. For the terms like felony, criminals, young offenders, parole, etc. which contains the derogatory meaning. They rephrase to “returning resident”, or “young person with justice system involvement” instead. For a drug addict, may called them "people who has misuse medicine in history."
 

Director Sandra Lee Fewer said that they hope these people will become citizens who have contributed to society in the future. If they have been called by criminals, they will never be able to get rid of such crimes, and these names may make people lose their humanity and were regarded as socially inferior not equally. Language is the foundation of thought, culture, and society. It is accumulated day by day and month to month over time. Therefore, languages should be put before the criminal record of the person.
 

Although the resolution was not signed by the Mayor of San Francisco London Breed, the spokesperson said that the mayor basically does not sign a non-binding policy, but she was very supportive. This resolution was passed last month and almost agreed entirely. It was endorsed by the district prosecutor and a group of 17 young people between the ages of 12 and 23 who expressed support for the changed title.

Photo:Webshot.