“Inreach” at CRCF from FreeHer

When you hear about FreeHer VT, it’s most likely in the context of our advocacy and organizing against the state’s $90 million proposal for a new women’s prison in Essex. You can check out this zine if you are curious to learn more about why we hold that position and what kinds of alternatives we are trying to build instead. But we do much more than that and want to share a little bit about a lesser-known aspect of our organizing.

We often hear skeptical people ask, “so you just want to leave people to suffer in CRCF instead?” This might be a good-faith question, but it couldn’t be further from the truth! When we speak out against the prison proposal, we also call for CRCF to be closed as soon as possible.

But as long as anyone is incarcerated there, we will be fighting for and with them to make their time there more bearable and humane. We are actively engaged in strengthening relationships and building power with people currently behind bars. We do this because we believe it’s crucial to fight alongside incarcerated people to improve the conditions they are currently experiencing at the same time as we fight to stop new prison construction.

In an effort to deepen these connections, our “Inreach” team sent a mass letter earlier this year to people incarcerated at CRCF to explain a little bit more about who we are, what we do, and how we can support. You can read that letter below! We’ve received lots of responses and are exploring ways to continuing strengthening these relationships. We hope that you’ll connect with us (here’s our linktree or email vermont@thecouncil.us) if you’d like to join this work or if you’d like to put us in touch with someone you know who is inside.

We are a small, mostly Burlington-area team of volunteers, so right now we only have the capacity to support people in or coming out of CRCF and not any of Vermont’s other prisons. But if you are interested in growing these kinds of networks across the state, please reach out and we can chat about how we work and try to support similar efforts however we can. We are stronger and incarcerated people are safer when we all work together!

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Hello & Greetings from FreeHer VT!

We’re reaching out to introduce you to our organization working to end the incarceration of women, girls, trans, and gender expansive individuals. We’re a small, mostly volunteer-run group. We advocate for reducing the prison population, putting money into alternatives to prison, and changing our focus towards community-based solutions. Created by the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, our campaign is driven by those with lived experiences of incarceration. Our work includes policy advocacy, community programming, direct support, and events.

The state is planning to build a new, larger women’s prison for $90 million. But instead of spending so much money on a larger prison to lock up more people, we are working to get people out and redirect money towards reentry, housing, education, and addressing root causes like substance use and mental health issues. We believe in accountability and recovery through community support rather than through punishment. We hope to see Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility closed and for those currently incarcerated to instead have access to community-based support.

Here’s how we can assist you:

Relational Support:

• The Peace and Justice Center has a pen pal program. Please let us know if you are interested in having someone to write to and build a friendship with, and we will pass your information along to staff at the Peace and Justice Center.
• Turning Point will begin offering recovery peer support programming in CRCF. Please let us know if you need any help signing up or finding out more information on this.
• FreeHer can also help support anyone who might be interested in creating a peer support program of their own.

Advocacy Services/Advocating for you:

• Share Your Story: If you’re interested in sharing your story, we can help you write and publish a blog; we can share your story on social media; or we can submit testimony on your behalf to the committees that make decisions around the prison systems and our laws. We send testimony to House Corrections and Institutions, Senate Institutions, House Judiciary, Senate Judiciary, and the Women’s Caucus.
• Participatory Defense Team: this is a community organizing model for people facing charges, their families, and communities to change the outcome of cases and return the power to people in the court system. Following the lead of loved ones, we support people through court watching, helping to contact lawyers, filing motions, creating social bio packets, and more. It is important to note that this is not a legal service, but a support program. Please reach out if you and your loved ones need help with your case.
• Grievance Support: We can help you through the internal administrative remedy process when bringing grievances to the Department of Corrections when your rights are violated.
• Legal Resources: We can connect you with outside legal aid services, like the ACLU or VT Legal Aid.
• Other resources: FreeHer has made a large list of services and supports that we know exist in the community including: mental health services, employment assistance, food, housing options, and more. Please let us know if you would like us to mail you in a copy. We can also send in applications (for housing or something like that) that you may need printed out. We can also help with reentry planning.

Direct Support:

• Canteen Fund Program: matches community members with people incarcerated in CRCF and they place money  on your commissary account. Please note donations can take a few months to receive based on when donors sign up! The funds are put on people’s accounts in the order that they signed up and no one receives more or less money or skips the line.
• Community Pantry: we have clothes, hygienic supplies, and other items if you need them when you reenter.
• Vermont Freedom Fund: this is Vermont’s only bail fund. Please let us know if you need help with bail and we can send a request to them.

You are not alone. FreeHer is here to stand with you in solidarity, support, and advocacy. For more information or to connect, feel free to write to us at 94 Colchester Ave, Burlington, VT 05401. Please also share this letter with other people in CRCF! We want to make sure everyone knows what we are able to help with.

In solidarity,

FreeHer VT