Support the Film

Director's Statement

Cast and Crew

Resources

Contact

Media

Home

BACKGROUND

LINKS

BIBLIOGRAPHY

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The United States has the largest incarcerated population in the world, with over 2.3 million people in jails or prisons as of 2008, over 1% of the adult population. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, if recent incarceration rates continue, an estimated one of every 15 persons will serve time in a prison during their lifetime.i Although these rates are high in the general population, different segments of our society bear a disproportionate burden of incarceration. Males and African Americans are more likely to be incarcerated than other groups. While one in 106 adult white males is currently incarcerated, one in 15 adult African American males is incarcerated. Based on current rates of incarceration, an estimated 32% of Black males will enter state or federal prison during their lifetime, compared to 17% of Hispanic males and 5.9% of White males. This also affects our children with an estimated 1.5 million children with an incarcerated parent. Additionally, criminal justice involvement is more common in urban areas, as compared to suburban and rural areas leaving distinct communities bearing the weight of the direct and indirect consequences of having a large population involved in the criminal justice system.

The formerly incarcerated face a formidable task as they attempt to reintegrate into civilian life, facing a multitude of roadblocks to successful re-entry. Some of these roadblocks are public policies or practices that limit access to supportive services that are necessary to create a completely healthy individual. They include civil restrictions, like losing the right to vote, particular conditions or bans that limit employment, eliminate public housing opportunities, and limit financial supportii. Being incarcerated strains the family ties and natural support systems that are a protective factor for successful community re-entry. Limited economic opportunity, homelessness, and unemployment, are often inextricably linked to the population and further hurdles increase the likelihood of these factors negatively impacting individuals.

The consequences of incarceration also affect entire families and communities. Families may be impacted through economic loss of a wage-earner, increased financial burden on spouses/partners, strained or severed relationships/loss of social support, increased risk of children going to foster care, and increased likelihood children will go to prison in their lifetime. Since specific communities are disproportionately affected by the criminal justice system, these outcomes are overly concentrated in specific places.

Joblessness among ex-prisoners has been linked to recidivism rates. Over one-third of serious offenders were unemployed in the six months prior to their arrest 1 Post- incarceration, employment rates plummet even further. Unemployment rates of ex- prisoners are estimated to be between 25 and 40 percent. Prisoners also demonstrate low levels of educational attainment—some 40 percent of adult state prisoners are functionally illiterate2 and more than half of state parole entrants have not graduated from high school.3

Conversely, research shows that ex-offenders who find stable employment and develop social bonds have significantly lower recidivism rates.4

These neighborhoods then face the burden of high rates of communicable disease, mental health concerns, and substance abuse in small areas; increased stigma as a result of crime and arrest patterns; the loss of wage-earners; and the possible spread of gang activity. Many disenfranchised individuals concentrated in one area decreases the communities’ political influence and ability to advocate for change through government channels. In many cases, high concentrations of ex-offenders may counter efforts to increase neighborhood levels of social capital and collective efficacy. The prospect of new crimes committed by returning prisoners can elevate fear of victimization among residents and perceptions that the neighborhood is unsafe. It may also destabilize communities by decreasing social cohesion and increasing social isolation. Cycles of increased police activity, police misconduct, community distrust of the police, and increased community chaos and criminal activity keep many communities stuck in a state of turmoil.