Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 6 December 2002 — Page 2

THE INDUNAP0U8 RECORDER

FRIDAY, DECEMBER ft, 2002

CORRECTION

In the Nov. 29,2002 issue of The Recorder, Sen. Glenn Howard’s name was spelled incorrectly. Sen. Howard has been a member of the Indiana Black Legislative Caucus (IBLC) since1992and represents District 33 in the Indiana Senate.

MIDDLEBROOK

handle the truth the way he gives it. They would rather things be sugarcoated, but that’s not what life is a bout.” Currently, Middlebrook is enjoying his nearly 10 years in radio and says he’s just

Continued from At '

lieves, but ain’t got nerve ducer of “The Bottom Line,” “Willie Frank is just real, enough to say,” declared shares his thoughts of the It’s that simple, but many Middlebrook. “I dog’t talk show and how people per- people aren’t ready to

down my nose at people. I C eive it.

talk off the wall (and) speak The show is about Willie, fluent ebonies, so people Part of it is entertainment identify with me because and part ofit is information. I’m there with them. That’s Sometimes people kind of where we are.” misconstrued where the line

Because his show is so is drawn,

straightforward, oftentimes We are a show that impacts living day-by-day, but that guests and listeners take of- the community with infor- he does have some future

fense to Middlebrook’s mation and action, but the aspirations,

unique personality. problem with us as Blacks is “I’d like to be nationally To those individuals, that we love to shout and syndicated (and) deal with Middlebrook says, “I say complain about what’s wrong Rush Limbaugh on a nawhat I believe and what I - we never want to take the tional basis. (One day) I feel. I feel very badly if that action to take care of busi- hope my audience will gain hurts anybody’s feelings or ness,” said Griffith. enough so they can fend for ifthat bothers anybody; but Local resident and “Bot- themselves a little bit better that’sjust the way the cookie tom Line” listener, Yolanda (and) take on some of my crumbles.” Taylor agrees with Griffith, philosophical points of

Thomas Griffith, pro- view.”

YES Continued from A1

ing that are available for businesses that hire ex-offenders. Linton leaves the mall without either an offer for work or realistic prospects to bring her income above poverty wages.

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with few exceptions, they all return to job and housing markets that are not ready for them. Charlie Mae’s House More than most, Ormeshia Another day wasn’t any better. Linton is prepared to handle the Downtown, she was rejected for challenges ofiife after incarceraa vending company position and tion. for a security guard job, both While in custody, she kicked because of her record. She has her drug habit and returned to had no luck at Circle Centre school, earning an associate’s mall, restaurants, pharmacies, degree from Oakland City Colwarehouses, even at an ex-of- lege. Through the Department fender job fair. "Sometimes the of Correction, she worked asapplication says a conviction sembly lines and drove a forklift will not interfere with you get- at two different companies. With ting a job," Linton says. "But the money Linton earned, she that isn't the real situation." repaid the state for her room Ormeshia Linton is one of and board, contributed to a Vic9,000 adults released from the tim impact fond and sent money Indiana Department of Correc- to her grandmother, who was tion this year. Each will face caring for her daughter. Linton their own set of challenges. But maintained her relationship with 13-year-old Taquita through parenting classes at the Indiana Women’s Prison and frequent visits after her transfer

to Rockville.

In 1995, Tippecanoe County Superior Court Judge Donald Johnson sent Linton to prison for selling cocaine. She was not due to be released until 2009. But when the judge learned of her efforts toward rehabilitation, he reduced her sentence. "Ormeshia is better equipped to handle the transition from prison to the outside world than most any client I have had,'“says the lawyer, James Edgar, who argued for her early release. "She is one of the most motivated exoffenders I have ever seen." As she is quick to point out, Linton is also more fortunate than most ex-offenders. Unlike many, she left prison for a supportive extended family and a safe place to stay. Linton lives along with four other women and their five children at Charlie Mae’s House, a Northside transitional home founded by Eaffiestine Colvin, A longtime direghfet for mental health and homeless service agencies. Linton says Charlie Mae’s House, named for Colvin’s late mother, is more home than shelter, her fellow residents more family than roommates. "This type of support system really makes a difference for me," she says. "A lot of people who get out of jail just fall back with the same friends and the same lifestyle that got them locked up to begin with. I’ve just been

lucky."

Lucky, perhaps. Earnest, certainly. But sometimes late in the evening when she boards the 17 College bus to head home from a job that pays sub-poverty wages and is scheduled to end in February, it seems that neither good fortune nor good will are enough to produce success. Linton’s daughter was scheduled to move in with her over the Christmas school break, but lack of money has postponed the long dreamed-of reunion. "I feel that if I only get a chance, I can prove myself," Linton says. "But sometimes I feel like I’m failing." For more information about Charlie Mae’s House, call 925-

0425.

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