Steven Shulman is an insurance broker, real estate investor and the founder of a nonprofit charity that saves the lives of pets in distress, Animal Care Now. He grew up in Miami Beach and served two years in prison after being arrested for possession of quaaludes. He received his civil rights back in the 1980s and has become an advocate for convicted felons who have been denied the same privileged he has received. Shulman just released a memoir of his life called, My Uncle Gloria.
I’m a convicted felon.
Back in April 1981, I made a mistake in trusting an acquaintance.
That mistake got me arrested, convicted, and sentenced to five years in state prison for possession of methaqualone.
After completing two years in prison, two years parole, and being released from all government supervision, I applied to Florida’s office of executive clemency to have my civil rights restored.
I was lucky.
The process only took me a few years.
I have done incredibly well with my life because I was afforded a second chance.
In 1988 I had all my civil rights restored, including: the right to vote, travel abroad, perform jury duty, hold public office, and be employed in certain government organizations.
Since then I’ve created a great life for myself.
Steven Shulman during a period where he was using a lot of drugs.
I’m a successful insurance broker, real estate investor, published author and founder of a nonprofit charity that saves the lives of pets in distress.
I hold the proud distinction of being the first convicted felon to be issued a real estate license in Florida, and the first convicted felon in Florida to be issued an insurance license.
I made a mistake when I was young.
I served my time.
And I have done incredibly well with my life because I was afforded a second chance.
Fortunately, I didn’t have to deal with a governor like Rick Scott.
There is of course a massive irony in all of this.
He’s a man with absolute dictatorial power who routinely denies people their right to vote after they’ve paid their debt back to society.
Scott doesn’t care if people turn their lives around.
He wants to keep them as second-class citizens- forever.
Shulman receiving his wife as a visitor while he was in prison.
25% of Florida’s black population is currently unable to vote due to prior felony convictions.
And right now, there’s more than 1.8 million people with felony convictions who have been permanently disenfranchised and cannot vote.
There is of course a massive irony in all of this.
In 1997, Scott’s healthcare company was charged by the federal government with the largest Medicare fraud in history.
Scott resigned as CEO during the investigation, pled the fifth 75 times when questioned by government attorneys, while the company pled guilty to 14 felonies and paid $1.7 billion in fines.
Scott lied his way out of criminal prosecution and a felony conviction.
Shulman showing off his book, “My Aunt Gloria” at Books & Books in Coral Gables.
He could easily have ended up as one of the millions of Floridians who are currently without their full civil rights restored.
But justice looks different for millionaires.
On November 6th, as Florida voters, we have the chance to change that.
We can take this issue out of the hands of politicians and give our fellow citizens their right to vote.
You’ll be amazed with what they do with it, if given the chance to be treated like everybody else.
Take it from my experience.
I was given a second chance and I made it count.
Others deserve the shot I got.
Vote for Amendment 4.
——Here’s Something Completely Different: ——
Meet The Three Frenchmen Who Are Taking Over Miami’s Culinary Scene
RISE NEWS is South Florida’s digital TV news network. Sign up for our awesome email newsletter to make sure you never miss a story!
Have a news tip about this topic or something completely different? Send it to [email protected].
What Do You Think?
-
This Miami Beach Synagogue Is About To Make History
What’s News In This Story?
–Temple Beth Sholom will make history in June when Gayle Pomerantz starts as the senior rabbi at the massive Miami Beach synagogue.
-Pomerantz has been a rabbi there for 23 years and is a familiar face to the South Florida community.
-But now, she will become a historical figure as the first woman to lead one of Miami’s largest synagogues.
-And from what we could tell, she plans on being an active leader.
–Pomerantz has helped the longtime senior rabbi Gary Glickstein double the size of the congregation over the past 20 years.
-Now, there are nearly 4,000 members of the synagogue.
Watch Another Story: Meet Miami’s Queen Bee And Her Backyard Insect Revolution
RISE NEWS is South Florida’s digital news network. Follow us on Facebook to make sure you never miss a story!
Have a news tip about this topic or something completely different? Send it on in to [email protected].
What Do You Think?
-
Millennial Intelligencer- A Country in Flames: Syrian Army Armed with Russian Thermobaric Weapons
Syria is on fire.
Confirmed sightings have been made in the country of both RPO-A “Bumblebees” and TOS-1 “Burratinos”.
Both of these platforms utilize thermobaric warheads, which disperse their fuel when approaching their target and ignite, creating large fireballs.
The Syrian Army has become infamous for its utilization of “barrel bombs” in the four year civil war. The inherent inaccuracy of the crude platform has lead to an abhorrent number of civilians being incinerated by the al-Assad Regime.
Despite Russian claims to the contrary, barrel bombings still occur, and with an alarming frequency. The Syrian Network for Human Rights claims that since the beginning of the Russian intervention into Syria, 120 people, including children, have been killed.
Thus the provision of the shoulder carried RPO to the Syrian army is alarming. The mission of the platform is primarily to destroy light skinned targets (i.e. infantry, cars) or clear out indoor spaces with either the six to seven meter fire ball, or the ensuing overpressure.
This will prove vital to Syrian Army forces in urban settings when fighting either FSA units or ISIS.
WATCH: Video showing force of American designed thermobaric warheads
Meanwhile, the Russians have been moving in both 2S19 Msta and TOS-1.
The former is a former of self propelled artillery with conventional 152 mm shells. The latter, is a T-72 chassis with an attached Multiple Rocket Launcher (MRL), equipped to fire 24 220 mm thermobaric warheads at one time.
While the “Burratino” can be used against population centers, the more likely target will be forests, or other concealment in which FSA units are hiding. These artillery pieces have been deployed to the Latakia region, implying that the Russians intend to assist a Syrian Army operation in that part of the country.
Nonetheless, the platform presents another potential means of horrific death for the Syrian people, and makes the possibility of removing al-Assad more remote.
(The ongoing civil war in Syria is a nightmare for the people of Syria. UNICEF has a specially earmarked page for Syrian children and mothers, should you feel the urge to help.)
Have a news tip? Send it to [email protected]. Like to write? You can become a Rise News contributor.
Cover Photo Credit: Freedom House/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
What Do You Think?
-
FEEL THE BERN: Sanders Now Leading Clinton In Iowa
In a shock poll out today by Quinnipiac, Vermont senator Bernie Sanders leads former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Iowa.
Sanders leads Clinton by one point- 41% to 40%.
It is the first time that Sanders has been ahead of Clinton in a major polling survey in the Hawkeye state.
“Sen. Bernie Sanders has become the Eugene McCarthy of 2016,” Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll said in a press release today. “He is the candidate of the Democratic left, against his own party’s bosses and their prized presidential candidate, Secretary Hillary Clinton.
9-10-2015 Quinnipiac Poll:
Sanders- 41%
Clinton- 40%
Biden- 12%
O’Malley- 3%
Webb- 1%
Chafee- 0%The new Iowa survey was conducted between August 27 and September 8 and sampled 832 likely Democratic caucusgoers.
From the press release:
“There is a wide gender gap among Democrats today as Sanders leads Clinton 49 – 28 percent among men, with 16 percent for Biden, while Clinton leads Sanders 49 – 35 percent among women, with 9 percent for Biden.”
Cover Photo Credit: Phil Roeder/Flickr (CC By 2.0)
What Do You Think?