How do we change the current criminal justice system, one defined by mass incarceration, a paradigm of punishment, and racial discrimination? Changing how we achieve justice through policing, courts, jails, prisons and reentry must include changing the public narrative about people who become involved with the criminal justice system. We must move away from the current narratives that pathologize people and their behavior and provides little consideration for the current and historic marginalization of low income comm! unities and communities of color.

This immense undertaking involves examining current and historical narratives about justice, crime, safety, punishment, race, class, and gender among others. This roundtable discussion will bring together a diverse group of thinkers to examine the current prevailing narratives, as well as explore opportunities for how these narratives might be transformed towards a more inclusive framework. The roundtable will include discussants from a variety of backgrounds and experiences including psychology, journalism, history, law and those who have been directly impacted by mass incarceration and the prevailing narratives.

Issues of mass incarceration and justice are complex and cut across many systems, structures, cultures and communities. As such, the efforts and dialogues around changing the current criminal justice system must also cross disciplines, structures, cultures and communities. The Justice Forum provides a space for leading thinkers in justice work from a variety of disciplines and experiences to collectively examine some of the most critical justice issues today. The Forum seeks to create a space for cross pollination of ideas and perspectives and contribute towards the efforts to rethink our current policies and practices in criminal justice.

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