How can we move beyond the current punitive system to implement community-focused solutions that prioritize the health and wealth of communities, especially communities of color disproportionately affected by mass incarceration and prison building?

Join the Urban Institute and the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs for the Punishment Beyond Mass Incarceration Symposium, which will feature expert researchers, emerging scholars, and diverse voices from various fields to explore the latest ideas in moving beyond incarceration. The symposium will showcase many thought-provoking presentations and discussions, ensuring a comprehensive exploration of topics such as the following:

• the history and impact of mass incarceration on communities 
• theoretical and practical aspects of prison abolition
• community engaged methods to reduce dependency on prisons
• strategies for creating alternative opportunities  

Whether you are an academic, researcher, or justice policy advocate, this symposium is a unique opportunity to engage with cutting-edge research and contribute to shaping a future where justice serves all members of our society.

Thursday, April 4, 2024 

8:45 a.m. Welcome and Opening Remarks 

• Edward Steinfeld, Howard R. Swearer Director of the Thomas J. Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Dean’s Professor of China Studies, Professor of Political Science, Director of the China Initiative, Brown University
• John Eason, Associate Professor of Sociology and International and Public Affairs, Brown University; Senior Fellow, Urban Institute

9:00 a.m. Carceral Capacity: The Detention Center and Prison Boom and Bust? 

• Isabel Anadon, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University at Buffalo, State University of New York 
• Sarah Ogundare, Undergraduate Research Scholar, Justice Policy Lab@Watson Institute, Brown University 
• Kaitlyn Sims, Assistant Professor of Microeconomics and Public Policy, University of Denver 
• Sam Theoharis, Undergraduate Research Scholar, Justice Policy Lab@Watson Institute, Brown University 
• Victoria Ylizaliturri, Undergraduate Research Scholar, Justice Policy Lab@Watson Institute, Brown University 
• Heather Schoenfeld, Associate Professor of Sociology, Boston University (Discussant)

10:25 a.m. Abolition as Policy 

• Monica Bell, Professor of Law and Associate Professor of Sociology, Yale University 
• Faith Deckard, Doctoral Candidate of Sociology, 
  University of Texas at Austin 
• Susila Gurusami, Assistant Professor of Criminology, Law, and Justice, University of Illinois Chicago
• DeMarcus Jenkins, Assistant Professor of Social Policy, 
  University of Pennsylvania
• Bryan L. Sykes, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Cornell University (Discussant)
   

11:40 a.m. Lunch Break 

12:10 p.m. Conditions Inside: Complicating Labor and Control (Part I) 

• Rachel Ellis, Assistant Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Maryland 
• Michael Gibson-Light, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology, University of Denver
• Naiima Khahaifa, Postdoctoral Fellow, Geography and African and African American Studies, Dartmouth College
• Allison McKim, Associate Professor of Sociology, 
  Bard College (Discussant)
• Ashley Rubin, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa, Coeditor, Law and Society Review (Discussant)
   

1:35 p.m. Conditions Inside: Complicating Labor and Control (Part II)

• Beatriz Aldana Marquez, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Connecticut 
• Gabreélla Friday, Postdoctoral Researcher, Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs and the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, Brown University
• Sadé Lindsay, Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Sociology, Cornell University
• Reuben Miller, Associate Professor, Crown Family School and Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity, University of Chicago (Discussant)

3:00 p.m. Politics, Punishment, and Reform

• Brandon Alston, Assistant Professor of Sociology, 
  Ohio State University
• Brittany Friedman, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Southern California 
• Felix Owusu, Postdoctoral Scholar, Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley 
• Amber Joy Powell, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology, University of Iowa 
• Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, Associate Professor of Sociology, Brown University (Discussant)
• Reuben Miller, Associate Professor, Crown Family School and Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity, University of Chicago (Discussant)

Friday, April 5, 2024 

9:00 a.m. Community Engaged Methods

• Sophia Block, Undergraduate Research Scholar, Justice Policy Lab@Watson Institute, Brown University 
• Brooklynn Hitchens, Assistant Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Maryland 
• Shannon Malone Gonzalez, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Rod Martinez, Senior Associate, Annie E. Casey Foundation
• Waverly Duck, Professor of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara (Discussant)

10:30 a.m. Funding Opportunities and Future Priorities

• Chloe Cockburn, CEO, Just Impact Advisors
• Steve Plank, Vice President, Research, Evaluation, Evidence, and Data, Annie E. Casey Foundation 
• Juontel White, Senior Vice President, Programs and Advocacy, Schott Foundation for Public Education
• John Eason, Associate Professor of Sociology and International and Public Affairs, Brown University; Senior Fellow, Urban Institute (Discussant)
   

11:45 a.m. Closing Remarks

About Unlocking Futures 

Founded on principle that Black and brown communities deserve alternatives to prisons for creating economic security and mobility, Unlocking Futures employs data and evidence-based strategies to guide communities in transitioning away from dependency on prisons toward sustainable economic development. Led by Urban Institute nonresident fellow and Brown University associate professor John M. Eason, Unlocking Futures emerged from the National Science Foundation supported Prison Proliferation Project, which collects extensive data on US prisons including their locations, histories, and impacts on local economies, to lay bare the ripple effects of America’s prison boom.
 

Support for this event was provided by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs and the National Science Foundation. For more on Urban’s funding policies, go to urban.org/about/our-funding.

We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals to engage fully. Please email [email protected] if you require any accommodations or have any questions about this event.