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Rikers: An American Jail
Directed by Bill Moyers
Sunday, April 15, 1 pm
Free
The United States is facing a crisis of mass incarceration with over 2.2 million people packed into its jails and prisons. To understand the human toll of this crisis, Rikers Island is a good place to start. Of the more than 7,500 people detained at Rikers Island on any given day, almost 80% have not yet been found guilty or innocent of the charges they face. All are at risk in the pervasive culture of violence that forces people to come to terms with what they must do for their own survival. Rikers: An American Jail, a riveting new award-winning documentary from Bill Moyers, brings you face to face with men and women who have endured incarceration at Rikers Island. 2016, U.S., DCP, 58 minutes. This film contains mature content which may not be suitable for all audiences.
Followed by a post-screening discussion with Kathy Morse and Barry Campbell featured in the film.
Kathy Morse
Kathy Morse is an advocate on social justice issues, focusing on women, children and adolescents. Most of her work is concentrated on improving the quality of programming, especially education in jails and prisons as well as the community upon release.
Kathy holds Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Law and Justice from Rowan University (1981) and worked for over thirty years as a paralegal for numerous law firms in Manhattan. Currently she is the Volunteer Coordinator of the New York Region for the Petey Greene Program which supplements education in correctional facilities by preparing volunteers, primarily college students, to provide free, quality tutoring and related programming to support the academic achievement of incarcerated people in some of the same facilities in which she was detained.
Based on her personal experience within the criminal justice system both as a paralegal and then as a defendant, Kathy has participated as a panelist at numerous events regarding women’s issues while incarcerated, specifically on educational programming, reentry issues, family reunification and mental health services in state prisons and city and county jails.
Barry Campbell
Barry Campbell describes himself as a “systems baby,” having experienced foster care, the juvenile justice system, incarceration at Rikers Island as a youth, and prison as an adult. Barry came to The Fortune Society as a client in 1992 after serving 2 1/2 years in a NYS prison, successfully completed substance abuse treatment at Fortune, and progressed at the agency from intern to staff member to his current position as Special Assistant to the CEO. As Special Assistant, he fills a diversity of roles including advocacy on criminal justice policy issues, hands-on program service development, and work with individual clients. Barry brings personal lived experience and broad professional expertise to his varied roles, and is a powerful and effective public speaker.
Co-presented with the Office for Safe & Healthy Neighborhoods; The Special Project, artmaking with families affected by incarceration; ACLU-KY; Mass Story Lab; The Bail Project; 2nd Chances; Mijente; New Legacy; Public Square Media; Create Forward: LSURGE; Kentucky Center for African American Heritage; and McNary Group.
Related Event:
Monday, April 16, 9 am – 12 pm
Mass Story Lab
Kentucky African American Heritage Center
1701 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd.
Louisville, KY 40203
The Mass Story Lab event will highlight the lived experiences of a handful of Louisvillians who are directly impacted by mass incarceration who want to tell their story. These storytellers are folks who were formerly incarcerated or detained or family members of incarcerated individuals. The aim of Mass Story Lab is to amplify the voices of those most directly impacted. Each story is five minutes in length from a storyteller whose life has been changed by incarceration. See http://www.massstorylab.com/.