Both Sides of the Bars
Both Sides of the Bars is a discussion driven show that examines the criminal justice system from various perspectives, including those most impacted by the Criminal Justice System. It discusses critical questions about how the current system works, its intersections with Social Justice and highlight the efforts that are being made to improve the lives of everyone that is affected by it.
Episodes
50 Years Since The Attica Uprising: Has Anything Changed?
Host Andre Ward talks to The Fortune's Society founder, David Rothenberg, about the Attica Prison Uprising which happened 50 years ago. Mr. Rothenberg was one of the 30 observers summoned by the leaders of the Attica uprising to witness their negotiations with New York State.
Housing Rights for People with Criminal Legal Histories
Host Andre Ward talks with Tabber B. Benedict, Housing Advocate/Special Assistant at The Fortune Society; Michael Chin, Civil Rights Enforcement Manager, Seattle Office for Civil Rights; and Ian Wilder, Executive Director, Long Island Housing Services (LIHS) about discriminatory practices against...
The Impact of Being Transgender in Men's and Women's Prisons
In this episode of Both Sides of the Bars, host Andre Ward talks with Jai Diamond, peer specialist at the New York City Criminal Justice Agency, and the first ever transgender person to go through the struggle of being imprisoned in a men's prison and then being moved to a women's prison.
Ending Solitary Confinement in NYC Jails & NYS Prisons
In this episode of "Both Sides of the Bars," we are joined by The Fortune Society’s Executive Vice President and Board of Corrections member Stanley Richards and HALT Solitary Confinement’s statewide organizer Jerome Wright to talk about the ending of solitary confinement in NYC jails and the...
Repairing Today's Ineffective Justice System Strategies
American prisons house more than 1.5 million individuals, an increase of over 390% since 1978. This growth persisted even in the face of an overarching decline in crime rates since the 1990s and the longest terms of incarceration since we began to collect accurate data. Over 600,000 men and women...
Pell Grant Restoration -- Its Significance For Affecting Meaningful Individual Change
On this episode, host Andre Ward talks to Dyjuan Tantro, the government affairs officer at the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI), about the restoration of Pell grants for incarcerated students.
2020 Year in Review: Criminal Justice Reform in the Age of COVID
In this episode of Both Sides of the Bars, host Andre Ward takes a look to 2020 along with his guest, gabriel sayegh, the co-founder of Katal Center for Equity, Health and Justice. They talk about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemia on the criminal justice system, the work done by Katal Center in...
Releasing Aging People in Prison: Why is it important now more than ever?
Americans are aging in prison. But what needs to be done about reducing that elderly population and what to do with them once they are released is still being studied and debated. On this episode, host Andre Ward talks about this issue with Jose Hamza Saldana, director of RAPP (Release Aging People...
