Many issues that are primary drivers of mass incarceration cannot be remedied through government solutions alone. Issues such as broken families and mental health, both forever altered by over criminalization, cannot be simply be repaired through legislation. Civil Society has the unique capability to address certain social issues that government cannot, or to address them more effectively than government can. This section also addresses issues in which over-policing attempts to fix issues that should be handled through the community.
““No one in this state should read this report and just roll their eyes,” Ward said to AL.com. “It’s a disgrace to our state. I know everyone says, ‘They are criminals’ and ‘Who cares?’ We profess to be the most Christian state in the country, but no Christian would allow their fellow man to be treated the way that they are said to be treated. That may not be the popular view, but it’s the truth.”“
Birmingham News
April 22, 2019
Read More“So whose approach was right? That’s a question that Pete Brook, a curator and researcher of the history of prison photography, recently asked his students to consider. Brook, who runs the blog Prison Photography, teaches a class on the topic inside San Quentin State Prison. He shared his students’ responses to the question, posed at the start of the Times story—“Would we fix our prisons if we could see what happens inside them?”—with Mother Jones. Their statements reflect the ethical gray area of the issue.“
Mother Jones
April 19, 2019
Read More“‘Family members of people in prison have needs in every area of life,’ Laure said. ‘Physical, financial, emotional, mental and spiritual. For some people, they might need to know where they can get groceries to feed their families. Others might need a job to make ends meet when the primary wage-earner goes to prison. They need to know how to deal with the mental duress, the stress, what they’re allowed to wear while visiting their loved one in prison, where to find local counselors or even daycare’.“
The Alabama Baptist
January 29, 2019
Read More"The Bentley administration politicized Alabama law enforcement and turned it into a weapon against the only person who dared tell the truth about the governor. They tried to make an example out of Collier as a warning to others."
Birmingham News
August 21, 2018
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