July 22, 2024
Incarcerated people have few if any decisions to make about their daily life. They are told what to wear, and are given the food someone else has decided to provide. The days are ordered according to the facility's schedule, and visits are determined by the visitor, not the inmate. Eventually the ability to make decisions is impacted.
July 7, 2024
I recently read a fascinating prisoner blog post. The man has been in prison for 30 years and says he is grateful for the sentence because he has been taught how to think through cognitive reframing, and he is peaceful and happy now. Seriously?
June 21, 2024
According to Indiana statistics, roughly 26,000 Indiana inmates have been reincarcerated, not for committing a new crime, but rather for a "technical parole violation"—such as missing an appointment or failing a drug test. Some of these violations act like a trip-wire that sends reentrants back behind bars for seemingly minor infractions, actions that neither serve the public or the reentrant.
June 7, 2024
"I remember the sinking feeling when the mail cart would pass my cell, for weeks and months at a time, without a letter for me. The squeak of the wheels passing reminded me that I did not matter to a single person outside that concrete box."
May 21, 2024
Fifty years of empirical evidence proves you can change the trajectory of the life of a family member or close friend in prison through visits, phone calls and more. So, do you have a family member or close friend in long term incarceration? If, so, here's what you can do...
May 7, 2024
The 1994 Crime Bill with its "three strikes" mandatory life sentence fed the fire of mass incarceration and actually did little to reduce crime. There is strong criminological evidence that life prison terms, with or without parole, do little to improve public safety because eventually people "age out" of the statistical criminal age group. Could there be a 2nd chance for some?
April 21, 2024
The effort is so successful that we are contacted weekly for more van transportation help.Yet with some funding at an end, and the need continuing to grow, more support is needed. Without continued funding, many of the vans we already have will stop running and a large portion of those who need transportation will lose their jobs. We've found a program that really works, and we're doing all we can to continue.
April 7, 2024
In 1953, 98% of men were either working or looking for work. Today, a Brookings.edu study says that one third of men of working age are spending most their time watching television. Meanwhile, employers in the U.S. are about 8.8 million workers short. But the good news is, this situation has opened a wide door of opportunity to people who are reentering society after incarceration.
March 21, 2024
While there is a push by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to give life sentences to people who commit 'speech crimes,' there is a large contingent of people with mental issues in our prisons and jails, who need help, but how? (Probably not LIFE imprisonment.)
March 7, 2024
Adjusting to a culture so different from living inside a prison or jail is no small thing and it takes time. Your loved one needs to get a license, or get a schedule with a parole agent, find a job, learn to help out around the house, and get used to his or her new life. Remember they've been told what to do for a long time, and won't want to be told much from you. Go gently, but firmly, and ask for their help.
