What if justice was something we felt | Ardath Whynacht | TEDxConcordia

Summary

The speaker, a professor and poet, shares a personal story about leaving their door unlocked as a symbol of trust and community. Working in prisons, they've befriended inmates, learning about their troubled pasts and the systemic failures that led to their incarceration. The script calls for a shift in societal priorities, advocating for community-based mental health and addiction services, and a justice system focused on healing over punishment. It emphasizes the need for social justice to prevent crime and the importance of supporting youth, who face numerous challenges, rather than resorting to punitive measures.

Takeaways

• 🏠 The speaker no longer locks their front door, symbolizing a shift in belief about safety and trust in their community.
• 👥 The speaker works with prisoners and has made friends with individuals who have committed serious crimes, highlighting the human connection beyond the criminal label.
• 📚 As a poet and educator, the speaker engages with inmates through writing and art, which serves as a form of rehabilitation and understanding.
• 📝 The descriptive writing exercise in a maximum-security prison revealed the harrowing childhood experiences of the inmates, providing insight into their life trajectories.
• 🌧️ Many inmates have backgrounds of abuse, neglect, and substance abuse, which are often the root causes of their criminal behavior.
• 🏥 There is a significant need for mental health care and addiction treatment services within the prison system, as a large percentage of inmates struggle with these issues.
• 💔 The speaker emphasizes the sadness and pain within prisons, where many inmates are victims of societal failures and lack of support during their youth.
• 👶 The youth today face greater challenges than the current adult inmates did, with lower average incomes and higher levels of anxiety and struggle.
• 💰 The government spends disproportionately more on services for older adults compared to youth, despite the latter's greater need for support and resources.
• 🌱 The speaker advocates for investing in community-based services to prevent crime and violence by addressing the root causes early in life.
• 🔒 The speaker argues against the reliance on prisons and punitive measures, proposing a shift towards healing and social justice as the path to a safer society.

Q & A

Why does the speaker no longer lock their front door?

The speaker no longer locks their front door because they no longer believe in monsters, implying that they don't think physical barriers are the solution to safety or fear.

What is the speaker's profession and how does it relate to their perspective on safety and community?

The speaker is a professor and a poet who works in prisons, which has given them insight into the root causes of crime and the importance of community-based support systems for mental health and addiction.

What was the purpose of the descriptive writing exercise in the maximum security unit of a federal prison?

The purpose of the exercise was for the inmates to learn to write descriptively, to evoke a sense of time and place for the reader, which ultimately revealed their difficult childhood experiences.

What common themes emerged from the inmates' childhood memories?

Common themes included running away, living on the streets, experiencing abuse, and struggling with addiction, all of which contributed to their current situations in prison.

Why does the speaker believe that many crimes and acts of violence could have been prevented?

The speaker believes that providing community-based mental health care and addiction treatment services for young people could have prevented many crimes and acts of violence.

What percentage of federal prison inmates are struggling with addiction according to the speaker?

According to the speaker, eighty percent of the inmates in federal prisons are struggling with addiction.

What percentage of men and women in prison need serious and intensive mental health care?

Forty-five percent of men and close to seventy percent of women behind bars need serious and intensive mental health care.

What is the speaker's view on the current state of youth in Canada compared to the past?

The speaker states that the average income for young people in Canada is less now than it was in 1976, indicating that youth today are facing greater financial challenges.

How does the speaker suggest that society should approach the issue of youth mental health and crime prevention?

The speaker suggests investing in services that help heal youth, such as mental health care, addiction services, family supports, and youth recreation programs, rather than focusing on punitive measures.

What is the speaker's ultimate vision for the role of prisons in society?

The speaker envisions a society where prisons are no longer needed because the focus is on healing and social justice, preventing the need for incarceration.

What does the speaker imply about the current approach to justice and its effectiveness?

The speaker implies that the current approach to justice, which includes incarceration, is not effective in making society safer and does not address the root causes of crime.