Despite making up 5% of the global population, the U.S. has more than 20% of the world’s prison population.
The country also spends over $80 billion on incarceration each year. Numbers are hard to find on funding for reentry services, but some estimate it to be much lower, to the tune of $2 billion.
Annually, 600,000 people are released from federal and state prisons, and in many states nearly one-third of those individuals will be rearrested within three years.
But what about life after incarceration? Does society believe that someone who has spent time in prison deserves the chance to be fully reintegrated into society and allowed to work and thrive? What are the barriers? Can we do more to aid their success?
In the most recent "Sound of Ideas Community Tour" we heard from several individuals were who formerly incarcerated. They spoke about their experiences not only being in jail and prison, but the lack of resources that was waiting for them as they reentered society.
The event was held in conjunction with "The Cleveland Orchestra's 2025 Mandel Opera and Humanities Festival: Reconciliation."
Along with the systemic barriers that people face, we dug into what the term "reconciliation" means to them. How do they seek forgiveness from those they have wronged? How do they reconcile with a society that has left them behind? And how do they love themselves after being incarcerated and work to accept forgiveness from others in their life?
Guests:
- Louis Fields, Outreach Manager, The Marshall Project - Cleveland
- Monika Gordon, Interim Academic Program Manager, Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry
- Mike Jones, Justice Housing Strategist, Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless
- Stephanie DeVincent, Program Administrator, North Star Neighborhood Reentry Center
