Just released from prison after only two years of knowing that he qualified as a veteran, Patrick talks about his experience with gang affiliations, mental health, and motivations about getting out of prison.

A formerly incarcerated veteran, Al, talks about his experience in the Navy and how being a veteran has impacted his experience with the criminal justice system.

Jackie Sumell shares her experience being mentored by Herman Wallace of the Angola 3. This mentorship led her to create The Solitary Gardens, a work of performance art exploring the intersection of gardening and criminal justice reform. She shares insights into how art can be used for social activism.

Sherrill Roland discusses how being incarcerated in a federal jail inspired him to start The Jumpsuit Project, a work of performance art born out of his thesis proposal at the University of North Carolina.

© Sherrill Roland

Transcript

Ricardo Cortés discusses how his art practice as an illustrator and author has shaped his view of criminal justice reform. He shares insights into his experience with residency at Rikers Island, in Queens, NY, and his subsequent encounters with centers of incarceration.

¬© Ricardo Cortés

The interviewee spoke to their experiences working as a social worker providing mental health services in the criminal justice system. She described different approaches to working with clients, whether more restrictive or ones that offer more autonomy. Additionally, she offers her experiences in confronting the hierarchies and “rules” that govern mental health in the criminal justice system and the ways mental health professionals become overshadowed by correctional officers, police officers, and judges. Overall, she expresses her affinity for restorative approaches in working with incarcerated individuals.

Rachel describes her brother’s journey in and out of the criminal justice system. She also describes the impact it had on her and her family. She also speaks about her interactions with the U.S. legal system as someone living abroad.

The interviewee spoke on their experiences as a mental health provider in a reentry program that coordinates with a women’s prison. The participant reflects on how their clients’ sought a space to speak on mental health. The participant observed that incarcerated people felt unable to express their struggles with mental health within the prison system because of a “prison culture.” The participant did not witness specific mistreatment against incarcerated people within their field. The participant also emphasized their belief in a rehabilitative approach when working with incarcerated people. From the participant’s perspective, many incarcerated people have undergone trauma that needs to be addressed through a public health perspective. In working with the reentry program, the participant was surprised at how incarcerated women took the initiative in completing their tasks within the reentry program, and based on these experiences, the participant supports giving more autonomy to incarcerated people.

Eric discussed community health and individual health impacts of incarceration and policing in the neighborhood.

Tevin discussed the impacts of incarceration on the community and how detrimental the carceral system is to community health. Particularly, Tevin shared his insight into the ways in which the carceral system takes mothers and fathers out of the community. Children grow up with limited guidance and lack structure. In turn, the criminal justice system attempts to fill the void created by incarcerated parents. He also discussed the lack of healthcare in prison. He emphasized Covid-19 and how prisons don’t take proper precautions to prevent the spread of the disease. Tevin felt that the prison system does not value the life of people in prison.