Behind Bars

As African-American women continue to be disportionaltely incarcerated at alarming rates in the U.S., their kids remain left behind with extended relatives, in foster care, and with families that often don't have the resources to transport them to prisons to visit their moms. Visitation between incarcerated women and their children is essential to restoring bonds that have been severed due to the arrest and conviction of a mom that has been sentenced to prison. Over the last 20 years, prison programs in womens prisons have begun the task of reconnecting incarcerated women with their children. "BEHIND BARS: African-American children with mothers in prison" will discuss a restorative justice approach, by utilizing the family group conferencing maori model. This book will highlight the colloboration between social services and the criminal justice system. It will also address the war on drugs and the prison-industrial complex in the United States. And finally, the goal of "BEHIND BARS" is to give children of incarcerated mothers an opportunity to become productive successful citizens that their mothers want them to be.