The States of Incarnation events were eye-opening learning experiences. The first event was a presentation by Piper Anderson and Sylvia Ryerson. The focus of their discussion centered around the contact and connection (or lack thereof) incarcerated peoples have with their families and loved ones. Many families of incarcerated individual are not able visit their loved ones because of lack of transportation and the distance from the prison. Even if they do manage to get there, they may be turned away without seeing them and are typically forbidden to physically touch the inmate. Sylvia Ryerson, a radio producer, sound artist and journalist based in Brooklyn, decided to tackle this issue by bringing the voices of families to the incarcerated through sound recordings and voice messages. She started by collecting recordings from families of those incarcerated and mailing them to the prison. These recordings lifted the spirits of the incarcerated, allowing them to feel closer to their family. I found it heartbreaking to know that many of these individuals were convicted of a crime they did not commit yet they suffer the consequences of serving time in jail for a prolonged number of years. 

The second part of this event was a panel discussion led by formerly incarcerated men followed by a movie about the NYC jail, Rikers Island. The film revealed what occurs beyond the front doors of the prison. It was shocking to learn more about the reality for those incarcerated. For instance, some inmates are not entitled to speak to a lawyer to help them in court, and many have experienced abuse from officers physically assaulting them. Prior to attending these events, I had no idea that incarcerated individuals could be treated in such a dehumanizing way. I think that we all need to be educated about this topic simply because society often shuts out the prison system, treating it as though it does not exist. However, this system is very much a reality for a large part of our population, and the stories of the incarcerated need to be told. The more these stories are heard, the more it forces us to think and rethink the system we have enforced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These events helped me gain a deeper understanding of the prison system and mass incarceration in this nation. I hope that in the future if a similar event were to take place, more of the student body would attend as the information obtained could potentially save the next youth from falling into the arms of the prison system

—Brianna Logan '20

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 Photos included above taken by Urvi Kalra, '18

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