What it Means to be ‘Facing Life’ — After a Commuted Life Sentence

“I basically went from living in a fishbowl, which is the prison yard, to swimming in a whole ocean.” That’s how Travielle Pope describes what it was like to reintegrate into a profoundly changed society after serving 26 years of a life sentence in a California prison. Pope is one of eight formerly incarcerated people KQED’s Pendarvis Harshaw and his co-producer Brandon Tauszik profile for their new multimedia project “Facing Life.” It explores the everyday challenges – from operating smartphones to finding jobs and shelter – the formerly incarcerated face. We’ll talk about the project and why Harshaw and Tauszik say it’s time to “prepare for a society where mass incarceration is no longer a thing—but mass integration is.”

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