The modern prison system's origins in slavery can be seen in telltale signs throughout the system. The system of chattel slavery had no incentive to keep Black families together—in fact, separation was deliberately used to punish the enslaved. Today, the prison system mirrors this in its treatment of families of the incarcerated. Prisoners are denied the opportunity to be fully present parents by the nature of their condition, and further separation from family through visitation denial, relocation, and other means are used as a way to punish and torture inmates. Ernest Boykin, a father of seven, speaks on his personal experience as a formerly incarcerated parent—and everything he did to ensure that he would remain in his children's lives despite the system's efforts to deny him that right.

Studio / Post-Production: Cameron Granadino
Audio Post-Production: Alina Nehlich

Read the transcript of this interview here.

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Slavery once split up Black families. Today, prisons do the same thing. | Rattling the Bars