In recent news, 200,000 people have been denied help with college costs since a law denied government grants and loans to people with minor drug offenses. Congress narrowed the number of people covered in years passed. Now there are bills in the House and the Senate that would finally repeal this unfair rule.
This may not effect me personally because I do not do drugs but it effects my beliefs for the successfulness of others that have been exposed to drugs. Many students are drawn to peer pressure and learn from their mistakes. Everyone should be given a second chance. Even Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio have all admitted to weed consumption and are still allowed to run for president. Under the initial law, people convicted of state or federal drug crimes became ineligible for aid for specific periods of time. In some cases permanently, based partly on the number of offenses. Incredibly, the law did not distinguish between felonies and minors.
This effects the all countries because most parents want their students to go to college after high school and pursue a career. The restriction is unnecessarily punitive. It affects the minority of young people who are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. It unfairly penalizes people for second time of a crime they owned up to once so they can change, been punished by the courts, and now discourages many people who will prevent for a chance at life. And by preventing people with convictions from getting the college degree, this has become the price of admission to the new economy. In conclusion, by eliminating the issue entirely, the government would ensure that people who are eligible and determined for applying themselves would have a chance at a clear path to college.