Our Mission: end mass incarceration
We place the voices of formerly incarcerated women and LGBTQ+ people at the forefront of the movement for alternatives to mass incarceration while working to restore safety, dignity, and respect in correctional facilities, and reducE barriers to successful reentry.
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Announcing
Formerly Incarcerated Led Service & Business Mapping Resource
Programs
Reentry
Did you know that most of the incarcerated people are released into the free world homeless and penniless?
As an organization led by formerly incarcerated people, Witness to Mass Incarceration understands that four pillars are needed to rebuild a successful life after incarceration: housing, employment, trauma-informed care, and community support.
Conditions of confinement
We expect to pay for our mistakes...but not at risk of our lives. Correctional facilities are dangerous places. Facing peril, we are forced to live in fear and degradation. We are hungry, humiliated, violated. And we are exposed to Covid-19 because we are not considered human beings worthy of protection.
Education, Advocacy & Policy Reform
If you have never been arrested, incarcerated, spent time in solitary confinement—and then been released without money and someplace to go—you have not walked in my shoes. We educate and advocate, we actuate and activate to collaborate for justice.
Civic Engagement
Witness is committed to taking an active part in the civic life of New York City, where we are based. We participate in a range of civic engagement activities, from getting a park, arranging for community disasters, or emergency response for disasters, schools, health and safety issues.
Advisory Councils
The perspectives of informed and dedicated stakeholders help us advance our mission and accomplish our goals. That’s why we’ve established advisory councils composed of faith leaders (Interfaith Leaders Council), youth (YOU- Youth Outreach for Unity) and seniors (Elderly Advisory Council).
Witness News
Upcoming Events
Witness with us
It’s time that women and LGBTQ+ folks people are at the forefront of the movement for alternatives to mass incarceration. It’s time to end mass incarceration, once and for all.