Last Sunday, a few of our staff had the opportunity to attend a church partner’s community lunch. In addition to some superb hot dogs and hamburgers, we had the chance to answer questions about what Changed Choices does in our community. Having shared wonderful conversations and questions with supporters, new and seasoned, we often come across what we call “jaw droppers”; a fact or circumstance that our clients encounter that blows them away.
Did you know the largest women’s facility in North Carolina does not have air conditioning?
Especially is the south, the idea of indoor temperatures of 90 plus day in and day out seems unimaginable. Which is usually the response we get, and from there the questions keep growing.
Did you know between 1980 and 2019, the number of incarcerated women increased by more than 700%?
This is often the fact that stops a conversation in its tracks because the next question is:
How did that happen?
The answer is not a simple one, but an important beginning in understanding how our organization walks alongside justice involved women. In the spirit of “back to school”, our blog will revisit one of our most popular postings during the month of September: Incarceration 101.