Why the Vermont Just Justice Blog?

Because of this I never imagined that our carceral system might be flawed.

I have discovered most Vermonters don’t realize that our prisons are dangerously understaffed, creating frequent inhumane lockdowns for residents and stressing an already antiquated system of corrections. Fresh air, exercise, healthy food, and education, which are all foundational Vermont principles, are not offered to our incarcerated people in any consistent way.  Healthcare and reliable services for rehabilitation and reentry are inadequate at best and unavailable for many of our incarcerated loved ones.

Like anything that needs changing, awareness is the first step. My hope is that this can be a place for awakening and action. That we can reclaim and recreate a system of corrections that reflects our core Vermont values of compassion, restoration and creativity.

Jennifer Canfield
Executive Director
AlliesLine.org
“providing direct support to those incarcerated and their loved ones.”

Janet

I have a history with our legal system running at least 30 years. Growing up without much parental supervision, early on I had all the rowdy types of friends you can think of. I got involved with gangs, drugs, and probation by age 14. I was different from my friends because I was able avoid incarceration. However, I watched as these “good” “kind” souls become wrapped up in a broken system. To this day, some of them are finding themselves still caught in this system well into their fifties, due to mental health issues, PTSD, among many other things never addressed in all those years of “rehabilitation”.

Later in life I became a corrections officer in Texas. I quickly realized I wanted to part of the solution and not the problem. Moving to Vermont a few years ago, wanting to be part of the solution, I became a recovery coach, group facilitator, and behavioral health tech. I never imagined, believing Vermont was such a progressive state, I would find out how much farther behind they are than Texas and California, with some of the hardest prisons in the country.  However, what I am seeing with a loved one incarcerated is that Vermont is inhumane in their actions. Have you ever heard of someone getting beaten while shackled with their hands cuffed behind their backs, all because they felt uncomfortable stripping naked in front of a guard who they felt stares at them in the shower, then stripped naked by force? This is just one instance of concern. I would hope the amount of ridiculous taxes that come out of my check are paying for rehabilitation and not more trauma to people who started out with trauma of all kinds. I intend on continuing to be part of the solution.