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“Prison is like a social death in our society.” - Owen Mortner
Owen was about 4 years old when he was first exposed to the criminal legal system.
He had met with his father every month to play and hang out at a local community center… until one day, his father didn’t show up.
A year later, Owen found out his father had been incarcerated in Florida, more than 1,000 miles away.
During the 15 years his father was incarcerated, Owen felt insecurity and shame.
“I remember being at an after school program, and kids went around talking about what their parents do for a living. I said, ‘ My dad’s in jail ,’ and actually, people didn’t believe me. They thought I was making that up.”
He didn’t know how to explain why he didn’t have an active father in his life. He didn’t want to think about what it said about him that his father was in prison.
Owen’s story is not unique. In fact, 2.7 million children have a parent serving time in prison or jail on any given day.
John, I’m asking for your support today to shrink this number. [[link removed]] Children like Owen miss out on so many years with their parents – time that could have been spent riding bikes, reading bedtime stories, celebrating graduations.
Thank you for thinking of those who are still waiting to be reunited with their families this holiday season.
Act now [[link removed]]
[[link removed]] Amy Fettig
Executive Director
Email: [email protected] [[email protected]]
P.S. Incarceration affects an individual’s entire community – family, friends, loved ones. Please give today to help end mass incarceration and reunite families like Owen’s. [[link removed]]
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