C In-Person Class: This class will be taught in person, in the classroom at the Vineyard Church.
Enrollment: Pandemic protocols may limit the enrollment for this class.
Registrants will be informed in advance, and a waitlist will be available.
What we now call mass incarceration has grown out of a complex set of circumstances. Among them are reaction to civil rights legislation of the 1960s, the rhetoric of “tough on crime,” “super predators” and the war on drugs, racial unrest, poverty, inadequate education, and aggressive prosecutors. The public does not see the overwhelming number of African, Hispanic, and Native Americans who languish in our prisons. Undeniably, there are people who need to be incarcerated to keep the rest of us safe. However, long sentences, and treating drugs as a criminal problem instead of a health problem, affect not only those citizens who are locked away. These factors also damage families, especially children, as well as entire communities. Knowledge is the first step toward prison reform. Join us as presenter Judy Wenzel shares more about this important issue.
Judy Wenzel taught high school completion classes beyond GED in the federal prison in Milan. She will talk about the challenges and joys of teaching such a rich diversity of students. Her book Light from the Cage: 25 Years in a Prison Classroom was published in 2017.
