There are countless numbers to keep youth out of custodial settings, not least the threat of waste and violence jail brings.
In New York, one group is using art, photo and video as an alternative to jail. The Young New Yorkers intervenes at the juvenile court, and with sanction of the judge, allows children who are convicted of non-violent misdemeanours (turnstile jumping, graffiti, public disturbance) to embark on 3-day or 8-week art programs instead of heading to jail for 3 months or taking on a long community service stint.
The Young New Yorkers (YNY) uses art to help children imagine different lives for themselves, to conjure new possibilities for their neighbourhoods and to interrogate what community justice is and might be.
Yesterday, YNY kicked off its #ArtNotJail campaign to raise funds for 2018’s programs.
“We are raising $10,000 to cover the costs of the next 6-months of public art projects,” writes YNY on its IndieGoGo crowdfunding page. “The next generation of Young New Yorkers will then use art to advocate for themselves, and advocate for a transformed criminal justice system.”
This humanising program listens to children, it opens up new potential and I’m a huge fan. Please consider giving to The Young New Yorkers.
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Prison Photography 
3 comments
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October 17, 2017 at 12:35 pm
John Golden
The best way to alter juveniles from heading to our penitentiary system? Send all juvenile offenders to maximum security prisons for a very short protective custody stay. Maybe 5 days in solitary. No yard and no contact with other adult prisoners of any kind. Just the sounds of homicidal terror to put them asleep at night! This will do more to rehabilitate than any do-gooder program. Social shock is the only thing that can turn these violent prone juveniles around! The SCARED SHITLESS PROGRAM.
October 18, 2017 at 8:57 pm
Manifesting Maria
Great idea! I firmly believe that if kids had a constructive, fun, rewarding outlet…trouble wouldn’t be as alluring.
October 23, 2017 at 4:43 pm
petebrook
Couldn’t disagree with you more John. Please note that the juveniles under consideration for the Young New Yorkers’ arts programming are all up on minor misdemeanour charges, so a maximum security prison would be an abuse of another level. Sadism I’d call it.
As for any youngster charged in court, I would never advocate they serve in a prison with adults. No exceptions.
As for Scared Straight programs. Research since the seventies are shown they have no deterrent effect.