PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — In honor of Second Chance Month, the National Constitution Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania hosted an interactive program that let people experience what it’s like to be a formerly incarcerated person reentering society.
More than 150 people who work within Philadelphia’s criminal justice system participated in the two-hour “reentry simulation” on Monday. They were given several tasks to complete within an allotted timespan, representing the difficulties citizens face in just the first month outside of prison.
“It’s to get participants to step inside the toll of a reentering citizen and experience all the challenges they face,” said Michele Mucellin, one of the organizers of the event.
When people leave incarceration and reenter society, many have trouble getting a job, finding food to eat or locking down a place to live — it can take them one to two months just to accomplish one of those feats.
Stacey Anderson, legal policy analyst for the Innocence Project and event participant, said the most stressful part of the simulation was acquiring the one thing that everything else hinged on: identification.
“That’s the biggest, No. 1 struggle,” she said, “because you have to have all forms of ID.”
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Anderson said she learned that as a provider, there’s not much compassion for people who were previously incarcerated: “For those who haven’t been directly touched by the system, there’s a lack of dignity and grace.”
Donnell Drinks, who facilitated the simulation, said the things that are integral for a reentering citizen are also often the most difficult to attain. And without attaining them, “that starts the downfall of you going back to prison,” he said. “Remember that — not paying bills, not having your ID. That’s always the foot that hangs over our neck.”
Drinks wanted participants to focus on the emotional, psychological and human components of the process, too. Drinks, who was formerly incarcerated, said that’s often the hardest part for returning citizens.
“[The program] gives them an opportunity to see the angst and stress with it,” he added.
The reentry program has been facilitated by U.S. attorney’s offices and other organizations nationwide, aiming to raise awareness about the challenges returning citizens face and encourage more understanding and support efforts.
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