Many people would say that prisoners deserve nothing more than a basic existence because of the crimes they have committed, and while I agree, I think they also deserve a chance to improve if themselves and attempt to legally rise above their past. I mean that to some extent their debts to society have been paid and what better incentive to prevent them from reoffending than to give them a true feeling of self-efficacy or in some way of equal opportunity as the rest of the nation's population . That said, I think inmates should receive welfare because after they are convicted, in most states there are some jobs that cannot be obtained, they are disenfranchised, and they should not be constantly reminded of their past because everyone makes mistakes, colossal or minute. One of the reasons I believe prisoners should receive some type of assistance is because of the lack of eligibility for work. If these people were convicted of crimes, employers would prefer not to give them the opportunity for employment, without necessarily worrying about whether they are the perfect, most qualified potential employee for the job. This thought process is fine until you start to consider the fact that if these people can't make money, enough money to support themselves and possibly a family, and don't have a strong mind, then the door to their past opens and everything opens. it makes it much easier to go stealing or whatever they've done in the past. For employers who are much more lenient with their hiring practices or feel a little more secure and confident that their new employees will not reoffend or embarrass their company by hiring ex-offenders are most likely employees who do not they pay much more than minimum wage or just under half the paper, otherwise it wouldn't have happened. That said, if there is a conviction for a crime that was not committed by the convict no one will hear "it wasn't me", because they will only see your criminal record and even if the documents can be expunged, those who know that the past will hold him forever, waiting for this information from the ex-con to be revealed to ruin him. In closing, would you rather be hassled and bothered, maybe even robbed because an ex-convict feels like a second-class, poverty stricken citizen? Or would you prefer them to receive welfare after they went to apply for a job but were not considered for them, after they were disenfranchised, and simply because of their past actions that they may be trying to get rid of ? Choose wisely, because somehow we, those who are not incarcerated, are directly affected.