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PAHOKEE, FL - JULY 16: In South Florida, on the southeast corner of Lake Okeechobee, is a small community called Miracle Village, home to more than 150 convicted sex offenders. Among the lifelong restrictions that follow former sex offenders, finding a home is one of the hardest: they must live at least 2,500 feet away from any bus stop, school, or place where children congregate. Therefore, Miracle Village is isolated: five miles from the closest town (population 8,000) and 40 miles from the nearest city. All but one are men, from different backgrounds and ethnicities, and they are all in a process of coming to terms with the lifelong label of “sex offender.”
General scenes around Miracle Village. From a helicopter the shear desolation of the village can be seen with virtually nothing on the horizon in any direction except mile upon mile of sugarcane fields and blistering heat. (Photos by Charles Ommanney/Contact Press Images)