Reimagining Justice

This quote just resounded with my heart for a safe and stronger community. “We need to shift the conversation to what heals people, what restores people, what empowers people to have options, to make other choices, to be positive parts of the community...         Ultimately, we need to re-imagine what justice is and what a justice system could be. We need to suspend reality and imagine something different, something healthy, something caring, something –I’ll use an unscientific term: “loving .” We need to imagine what love can look like in policy and how that can translate into practices and policies.” –Clifton Lacey in The Effects of Incarceration and Reentry on Community Health and Well-Being by the National Academies.

What would it look like for a community to come around children, youth and adults who are impacted by incarceration? The Alaska Criminal Justice Commission reports that our communities are impacted by trauma, substance use disorder and incarceration. We need to look at primary prevention, diversion practices, mentors, reentry services and other interventions that keep people out of corrections during this pandemic. What brings resilience to our community? Opportunities for housing, employment, education, healthy families, access to health care, treatment, community connections.. meaningful engagement. Let’s keep talking.