A Pause for Reflection

Over the course of the semester Kelly and I have learned a lot about bureaucracy and red-tape within the government and system of higher education.   I highly underestimated the difficultly associated with getting a study approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) particularly when it comes to at risk populations, like inmates. Today that red-tape reared its ugly head again as it is postponing the start of the study for another week or two.  

Having the week off from teaching allowed me to take some time to reflect about the barriers social workers face in changing the landscape of the criminal justice system. As a student at the Brown School, for the majority of my day I operate in super supportive circles that understand the importance of addressing things like the overpopulation and disparities within our criminal justice system.  I interact with people see the overlapping issues between untreated health concerns, low paying jobs, lack of paid leave, the educational system, and the list goes on.  Sometimes I forget that not everybody lives and breathes social problems and possible remedies.  However; the more time I spend outside of the Brown School, the more I run into people that simply do not understand. 

If the criminal justice system is not directly affecting you, why would you care? As a person working with an inmate population, you would think that I would have a bullet proof answer as to why interventions like TEP and mentors post-release are necessary, but the fact is that I don't--besides the fact it is colossal waste of money.  While some may find the argument of money to suffice, I don't see convincing people that the criminal justice system is a waste of money as success. I want something that tugs peoples heart-strings, that prompts action, I want to to humanize people in the criminal justice system and prove that they are worthy, preferably in 90 seconds or less.  The problem is, how do you consolidate the history of a slave-based economy, segregation, medical abuse and experimentation, and the implications of poverty when the barriers today are seemingly gone?  It is exhausting and overwhelming and some people simply do not want to see.  

While I still am working on my elevator speech as to why every American should care about decreasing the size of the criminal justice system and addressing the overwhelming racial disparities, I am getting closer. This week I watched an excellent presentation given by some fellow classmates and they referred to this quote:

"You do not take a man who for years has been hobbled by chains, liberate him, bring him to the starting line of a race, saying, "you are free to compete with all the others." and still justly believe you have been complete fair..." Lyndon B Johnson

While President Johnson wasn't referring to the criminal justice system during this particular speech, I think it can be applied to the importance of investing in programming for inmates pre and post release.  After reading this quote it seems a bit silly that we expect anything other than failure from the current model. 

Until next time,

E & K