RestoreHER Conference 2025 (2-3 points)

 

Attending an Academic Conference (2-3 points)

This August, I attended the Restore HER Conference in Savannah, Georgia. I was invited because I am the co-social media chair for Unlocked Minds. Unlocked Minds is a program under the Social Justice Program at Spelman, which is focused on uplifting and spreading awareness of people impacted by incarceration. The theme of this year's conference was D.A.T.A is Life, which focused on how to use research to influence policy that affects formerly and/or currently incarcerated individuals. D.A.T.A stands for Data Access, Transparency, and Accountability. One key topic that resonated with me was the story of the founder, Pamela Winn. Winn was a pregnant woman who was sentenced to prison for six and a half years. Despite her being pregnant, she remained shackled for most of the day and chained to the bed at night.  Abysmal conditions in the prison caused Winn to have a miscarriage, the prison guards hesitated to help Winn receive medical care, and threw away the blanket containing her deceased child. After her miscarriage, Winn was placed in solitary confinement. When she was released, she began to advocate and lobby for pregnant people in the incarceration system. She became instrumental in the introduction and passage of a bill that stopped the practice of shackling pregnant people in jails and prisons in several states. Her story resonated with me because many people in my family have been impacted by the incarceration system. Until this conference, I considered this to be a regular part of life. After listening to panelists' stories at the conference, I realized how eerie it was for me to be accustomed to the policing and jailing of Black people. I plan to pursue my master's in social work and become a school social worker. Because of this conference, I intend to go into my profession with a new perspective on disciplinary actions in schools, as punishments such as suspensions, detentions, and expulsions increase the risk of Black and Brown children's chances of entering the incarceration system. My current goal is to read more literature surrounding this topic, such as Pushout by Monique W. Morris or The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander. In the future, I intend to work with organizations like Unlocked Minds that focus on incarceration's impact. 

By Asheley Jones