Walls

powered by

Advocacy

Through

The interviews supported information and experiences gleaned from

over the last

with

in

1000+

3

50+

30+

additional interactions

years

partners and organization

different states through Zealous's work

How can advocates who are not

This is a working project, and we welcome your wisdom and contributions throughout this guide.

The Experts.

Learn more

Introduction

directly impacted by the criminal legal system work most effectively and ethically for systemic change with people who are currently incarcerated

This project was born out of numerous conversations with advocates, public defenders, movement lawyers, and people who have been directly impacted by the U.S. criminal legal system—all of whom spoke to the need for more intentional, trauma-informed partnerships between inside and outside advocates.

Over the past two years, Zealous
has worked deeply and directly with advocates who are currently incarcerated, in addition to supporting local partners in advocacy projects where they worked directly with people on the inside. We heard from many individuals about prior experiences in which they were traumatized and let down by collaborations with outside advocates. We became acutely aware of just how much damage could be done in the quest to do good.

In light of these conversations and observations, Zealous has launched this guide. We hope it is an evolving community resource on how to partner with people who are incarcerated in an ethical and equitable manner

This is by no means

comprehensive

We have just started the process of recording our own experiences, and those of some of our allies and partners, to hopefully inspire other experts, advocates, storytellers—inside and out—to share their insights and build upon, react to, and amend what is already here. The following learnings are based on our experiences as an organization in building advocacy partnerships with people on the inside and free-world advocates who work with people on the inside—as well as interviews with outside and inside advocates who have long been immersed in this work.

We recognize that there are no right answers when it comes to this ever-complex and evolving area. Again, this is just a start. An offering. Our hope is that, in gathering as many perspectives as possible, we will cultivate a representative and informative communal resource.

Our Process

Over more than a year, Zealous interviewed public defenders, organizers, people with direct experience, community members, and advocates, some of whom are quoted directly and others whose contributions are embedded in this work but not explicitly cited.

an incarcerated writer, strategist, and block representative. Sentenced to Life as a Juvenile. 

a former public defender and current Managing Director of Zealous.

a political strategist, philosopher, entrepreneur, and founder of the Capstone Group. Incarcerated for 36 years.

a public defender working in the Hennepin County (Minneapolis) public defender office.

a former public defender and current Director of Defender Initiatives at Zealous.

a former public defender and Founder and Executive Director of Zealous.

the former Director of Collaborative Advocacy at Zealous.

Chief Defender of the Defender Association of Philadelphia.

the former Executive Director of the Michigan Prison Doula Initiative and current Regional and Prison Program Director at Zealous.

Founder of Life After Release, an organization by and for formerly incarcerated women.

civil rights attorney and a long-time public defender.

Founder of Redeeming Kimberly and formerly incarcerated after being sentenced to Juvenile Life Without Parole.

a Chicago organizer, activist, and founder of Inside Outside Acting Crew.

Executive Director of the Parole Preparation Project.

About Zealous

Zealous is a national advocacy and education initiative working to topple the historic imbalance of power over
justice media, narratives, and policy. We do this by supporting, organizing, and skilling up coalitions of
public defenders, advocates, and people with direct experience to harness the power of media, technology, storytelling, and the arts to tell more compelling stories and work better together.

Project Partner

Zealous initially began this guide in partnership with the Yale Undergraduate Prison Project (YUPP), an association of college students that works with young people who are incarcerated in Connecticut and supports local organizations in their advocacy efforts around the criminal legal system. The partnership ultimately produced two separate projects based on our intended audience and focus. YUPP’s project focuses primarily on engagement with people who are incarcerated through mentorship and tutoring programming. This toolkit explores partnerships with people who are incarcerated on advocacy initiatives.

Glossary.

Person-Centered Advocacy

Inside Advocate

Outside Advocate

inside and outside advocates working together toward the abolition of unjust policies and/or practices that remove dignity, safety, humanity, and freedom from a person’s life.

a person who is incarcerated, proactively advocating against unjust policies or institutional treatment and/or advocating to address poor quality of life issues in prison.

a person who is a social justice advocate but is not in prison.

Trauma-Informed Engagement

Person with Direct Experience

Jail

engagement strategies that incorporate trauma-informed mindfulness when working with incarcerated people.

a person who has personal lived experience with incarceration.

a pretrial detention facility, typically referred to as a county jail. Distinct from post-conviction federal or state prisons.

Prison

a post-conviction facility typically incarcerating individuals for long periods of time.