Dear Dr. Stickland,
The attachment information will introduce you to Tobias Fox. Tobias is a young man that has been working with me for over 17 years.
I also sent you a link to Michelle Alexander, the author of The New Jim Crow Law and two links where you can learn more about me and the Creative Spirits of the State of New Jersey.
When I first met Tobias I recognized that he had great potential but somehow he had lost his way. I later learned that at the tender age of six he witnessed his father attempt to take the life of his mother by beating her with the back of an axe. The mother went to the hospital and the father went to jail and the 4 sons went to live with the father's sister and husband along with their 10 children. When the father was released he then got lost in the bottle and became an alcoholic, which later caused him to lose his mind.
The mother was reunited with her sons about 9 years later when Tobias was 15; however, in less than one year she died practically in Tobias's arms from an asthma attack. Another year later, Tobias, the second oldest of the 4 children, took charged of the family when his younger brother died from a freak medical accident. The younger brother had his tonsils removed.
After a few years of mentoring with Tobias I was able to convince him to turn his life around and now he is one of our most contributing young members of our society, but his past is haunting him and this is why I am contacting you.
Tobias wants to be, or should I say, he is an educator. He had two minor drug convictions and was told that he could only have one of them expunged. The remaining conviction that took place over 17 years ago is preventing the recent 4.0 high honor graduate of Essex County College and 4.0 graduate of the City College of New York's Publishing Certificate program to teach within New Jersey's public school system.
It is hard for me to believe and even harder for me to accept that the state of New Jersey will not forgive a young man who, after overcoming so many obstacles, and has pulled himself up by his boot strings, and is ready to help the many other youth that we are losing, would be denied the opportunity to teach. Tobias has received many awards recognizing his accomplishments, including a Proclamation from the Township of Irvington and an Unsung Hero Award in 2003, a Coca-Cola Two Year College Scholarship in 2008, and two Returning Scholar Scholarships presented by the faculty of Essex County College. What do we tell Mr. Fox, to become a truck driver or move to another state?
I ask that you read the material that I have sent you. Tobias has a new way of teaching that has not been used in our system. He has a better curriculum than most PH.D's. He truly believes in giving back.
I am sure there must be a way that the state of New Jersey can forgive him. His crime was not one that lives were taken. In fact, he is only charged with not giving the drugs to the police officer but no drugs were ever found. If he did not give drugs to police it is because he did not have any, if he had drugs, then he would have been charged with possession, not failure to give.... This is proof of the injustice that happens in our community when we cannot afford good legal representation.
I do not know if you are familiar with Michele Alexander and her book The New Jim Crow Law, which explains how the criminal justice system is used to enslave people.
In her book, Professor Alexander explains that, "As of 2004 more African American men were disenfranchised due to felon disenfranchisement laws than in 1870, the year prohibiting laws that explicitly deny the right to vote on the basis of race." She goes on to explain, "If you take into account prisoners, a large majority of African American men in some urban areas have been labeled felons for life," (such is true where Mr. Tobias Fox is concerned, although his offense is not a felony it just as might as well be.)
She continues with, "These men are part of a growing under caste-not class, but caste-permanently relegated by law to a second-class status. They can be denied the right to vote and automatically excluded from juries and legally discriminated against in employment..." (Mr. Fox cannot get a job with the education department in New Jersey) "...public benefits, much as their grandparents and great grandparents were during the Jim Crow era."
Dr. Strickland, below is an email Tobias sent me. I am the one who encouraged and mentored him for many years. Now I do not know what to say to him, so I come to you. You are in a position to address this situation to our legislators, at least try to convince them that this law is holding this good man back. I hope that you will do this. I have a letter dated June 18, 2010 that you said that you would bring to the attention of the State Board of Education president, which you are a member of, about the program that I purposed to you that focuses on raising the level of consciousness about the perils of smoking for our children. I have not heard anything from you or the State Board of Education, I hope that you will bring this issue to the attention of those, especially our governor,
letting them know when our young people like Mr. Fox, who have proved that they are deserving of a second chance, the state of New Jersey should give them the opportunity.
Sincerely,
Jihadah Sarif, President
Creative Spirits of the State of New Jersey
Office: (973) 766-1514
From Tobias A. Fox:
The New Jersey Department of Education called me and stated that I have to get the arrest expunged in order to teach in New Jersey. Even though the offense occurred 17 years ago and is a minor offense, NJ doesn't have a forgiveness program, unfortunately. I was told that this would not affect my teaching career. The only thing is that I had an expungement a few years ago and I was told by the attorney who handled my expungement, Geoffrey N. Rosamond (McCarter English), in March 2008 that you can't have two expungements in a lifetime or something like that. Now what do I do! I've been setting myself up for a career in education and publishing? I feel like....I can't even describe it. :-(
tobias a. fox
