Co-sponsored by Chicago Books to Women in Prison and the Chicago
chapter of Black and Pink
Join an interactive book
discussion with Crystal Laura (Being Bad: My Baby Brother and the
School-to-Prison Pipeline) and Maya Schenwar (Locked Down, Locked Out:
Why Prison Doesn't Work and How We Can Do Better). The authors will discuss
the school-to-prison pipeline, the social forces that lead to incarceration,
the way prison breaks down connections between people, and the impact of prison
on families--including their own. They'll also touch on the crucial role that
books play for people in prison. Maya Schenwar is the editor-in-chief of
Truthout. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian,
Salon, the Nation, Mother Jones, and other publications.
Maya is the recipient of the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Chi
Award and a Lannan Residency Fellowship for her writing on the impact of prison
on families and communities. Crystal Laura is an assistant professor of
educational leadership and co-director of the Center for Urban Research and
Education at Chicago State University and a volunteer teacher at St. Leonard's
Adult High School for formerly incarcerated men and women. Among her
publications are Being Bad: My Baby Brother and the School-to-Prison
Pipeline and Diving In: Bill Ayers and the Art of Teaching into the
Contradiction (co-edited with Isabel Nunez and Rick Ayers). By day, she explores
teacher education and leadership preparation for learning in the context of
social justice with the goal of training school professionals to recognize,
understand, and address the school-to-prison pipeline. During the second shift,
she co-parents two marvelous boys who give her work in the field of education
particular urgency. Refreshments will be served.