Read/listen to KQED's coverage to learn more about our work and the change we seek: https://lnkd.in/gHitKeTq Many thanks to Kate Wolffe, CapRadio, and KQED for this effort!
Back to the Start
Civic and Social Organizations
Producing narratives by incarcerated people that highlight our nation's systemic and racial inequities starting at birth
About us
We empower incarcerated people to write and produce stories about their childhood to raise public awareness and galvanize support for systemic change so that all children can reach their full potential, regardless of zip code. Our vision is to reshape our nation’s social contract with the most vulnerable of our society to focus on investments in upstream development and growth rather than paying an even higher price on downstream systems, such as mass incarceration, that are only treating the symptoms of our policy failures. Our new narrative series is grounded in the power of stories to provide a historically missing viewpoint, from the incarcerated, that helps build empathy and a shared understanding of the legacy of our nation’s systemic and racial inequities starting at birth. We value the power of transformation. We believe in the ability of incarcerated people to be accountable, reflective, and to achieve personal growth. We also contend that our community members and leaders can learn from their successes and failures. Transformation is possible-whether for an individual, a family, a community, or society as a whole.
- Website
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www.backtothestart.org
External link for Back to the Start
- Industry
- Civic and Social Organizations
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Type
- Nonprofit
Employees at Back to the Start
Updates
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A vote for Prop 6 is a vote to end slavery and forced servitude in CA. Prop 6 will NOT stop work inside prisons, it will help ensure they are doing the right work that leads to becoming productive tax paying members of society. By prioritizing rehabilitative labor, Prop 6 will also help ensure that people can work part-time while attending education and rehab programs to help them stay out of prison for good. #YesOnProp6 #voteyesonprop6 #prop6 #SecondChances #BreakTheCycle #backtothestart
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This World Mental Health Day, we want to recognize the mental health of those who are incarcerated. As a society, we often fail to overlook that at least 78% having experienced *at least four* traumatic events childhood event (Adverse Childhood Experiences). A childhood of trauma untreated will have a lifetime of impact. We believe that the act of writing and sharing the childhood stories of the incarcerated, and allowing them to explore the challenges of their childhood using a trauma-informed approach, can play a unique role in creating change, for the individual authors and society. We believe in the power of stories to transform the world and help forge a future that will be brighter than our past. #worldmentalhealthday #worldmentalhealthday2024 #backtothestart #writingtorightthesystem
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Shout out to (Back to the Start co-founder) Rahsaan Thomas and everyone who's worked to make this week's first ever San Quentin Film Festival a reality! We believe in the transformative power of film and sharing stories and applaud you all on this groundbreaking event! 🌟🌟🌟 #prisonart #storieschangelives #backtothestart
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🌟Some of our #BacktotheStart team enjoyed connecting with our friend and advisory board member, W. Kamau Bell, after his performance. W. Kamau Bell Gets His Act Together runs through 10/12 Berkeley Repertory Theatre in addition to a performance in Davis at the Mondavi Center on 11/8. Highly recommend! 😂🔥👏
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Check out this new report from Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice: https://lnkd.in/gjtCjN4n to see their key findings about crime rates in California. #backtothestart #californialaw #votingmatters
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Unaddressed, social determinants of health will continue to adversely impact health equity by worsening health outcomes, widening disparities, and increased health care costs for vulnerable communities. #SDOHmatters #SupportAB225 #CALeg #backtothestart @yourcbhn @CaliforniaPrimaryCareAssociation @cafp_familydocs
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Back to the Start was in Sacramento yesterday meeting with our CA legislators to advocate for AB 2441 [to eliminate the state mandate that requires educators to notify police of a broad range of student behaviors and incidents] alongside our peers as part of the California Dream Alliance. Many thanks to Assembly Majority Leader, Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, for your support! @cadreamalliance #advocacymatters #supportingyouth #backtothestart
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"I was hooked on poetry forever when I discovered, on the cusp of adolescence, that there were poems available at our local library, entire books of them, full of pain and longing and fear, full of openly expressed shame and the ache of isolation. Poetry has been a reliable place in my life where it is possible to tell the truth about even those subjects people generally avoid, subjects like addiction, mental illness, and violence. When I visited Back to the Start, I was deeply moved to have entered a space, in a carceral setting, designed to allow people to tell themselves and others the truth about their early lives, about the forces that shaped their paths. I am honored to have the opportunity to bring the craft and the magic of poetry to this incredible program." - Francesca Bell 🖊️📓⛓️💥
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Back to the Start program participant reflects on the impact and value he has gotten out of our writing workshops in San Quentin. To read more about our program, visit our website linked in our bio. #backtothestart #writingtorightthesystem #sanquentinprison #reflectionsbehindbars
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