More than 12,000 prisoners in the California correctional system have entered into a hunger strike to protest solitary confinement practices in the state’s prisons. The hunger strike is the largest of its kind in California history, nearly doubling a similar hunger strike in 2011.
The following post originally appeared on Justice Fellowship’s weblog. To learn more about Justice Fellowship and its work to reform the criminal justice system, visit www.justicefellowship.org.
An investigation has revealed that California’s prisons have been routinely sterilizing female prisoners. The Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) released a report that found that prison doctors have performed tubal ligations on nearly 150 female inmates from 2006 to 2010 without required state approvals.
There’s a solution to crime, and it’s been staring us in the face for a long time. It’s not more education. It’s not better economic policies or a police officer on every corner. Economics, legislation, and policing are all important, of course, and followers of Jesus should be working vigorously in every area to promote justice and peace, but none of those things will actually solve the problem of crime where it starts: in the human heart.
The long-running PBS children’s show Sesame Street has added a new character.
On a recent show, Alex, a young boy, reveals to his friends that his father is in prison. “All this talk about my dad and where he is got me really upset,” he tells them, “… [I’m upset] because of where he is … he’s in jail.”
Frontlines is a video series that brings you close to the work of Prison Fellowship through the lens of Prison Fellowship Ministries CEO Jim Liske’s encounters with the inmates and families. In the latest edition, Jim visits “Vince,” a new inmate at a detention center in Hawaii.
The dire consequences of a felony conviction last far longer than a term of years in prison followed by additional years of parole. In addition to those direct punishments, offenders are denied licenses for many jobs, lose their right to vote, and cannot possess guns.
“Healing Walls, an Inmate’s Journey” by Cesar Viveros-Herrera and Parris Stancell (Photo by Jack Ramsdale/Mural Arts Program)
How important is it for inmates to foster and develop artistic creativity behind bars? In a recent article for philly.com, Stephanie Ogrodnik asserts that in-prison art, landscaping, and writing programs serve an important role in preparing inmates for release, changing the way they see the world around them, and even facilitating reconciliation between prisoners and victims.
My father lived through the Great Depression. Like many men and women who experienced that period of want, he has a hard time throwing things away. He has sheds full of things he has saved, because “someone might need it someday.”
On a broadcast of PBS’ Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, PFM Senior Vice President Pat Nolan offers his thoughts on the incarceration of mentally ill inmates, and the Christian obligation to reach out in love to those in need behind bars.
“You know, Jesus said, ‘I was naked, and you clothed me.
What impact does imprisoning young offenders have on their development and maturation? A new study by economists Anna Aizer and Joseph J. Doyle, Jr. indicates that juvenile detention is not the deterrent desired by law enforcement officials, but actually increases the odds of recidivism while reducing the possibility that they will graduate from high school.
Join the momentum of national and international leaders gathering together on October 10 for this year’s fourth annual Movement Day in New York City!
This one-day event will bring together ministries and other organizations that are working in concert to bring hope and restoration through gospel movements in cities worldwide.
At a recent conference in England I had the opportunity to hear Bill Hybels, senior pastor of Willow Creek. Bill has often said that “the local church is the hope of the world.” I couldn’t agree more! As the Body of Christ, who is the Light of the World, the local church is God’s Plan A to heal the woundedness of individuals, families, and the culture.
South Bay, Fla.—A lot had happened in the last 24 months. There had been miracles, hard times, challenges, and growth. As 36 students in the Prisoners to Pastors program – along with 14 men completing the faith-based pre-release program – prepared to graduate, they sat under a handmade banner that read, “The road is paved.”
Where there is no vision, the people perish.”– Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)
Vision is destiny. Our feet will generally take us where our eyes are focused, so if we want to get anywhere, we had better have a clear picture of where we’re headed.
Prison Fellowship is pleased to announce the expansion of its “Prisoners to Pastors” program to the Cristina Melton Crain Prison in Gatesville, Texas. Forty inmates will be participating in the program, which provides seminary-level education and training in prisons.
Facilitated by Prison Fellowship volunteers and in cooperation with The Urban Ministry Institute (TUMI) of World Impact, the Prisoners to Pastors program offers former lawbreakers the chance to become leaders of the Church behind bars and after they return to the community.