Prisoner Visitation and Support (PVS) has been busy preparing volunteers to return to visiting people incarcerated in federal and military prisons across the country.
During the pandemic, very little in-person visiting was allowed, but volunteers were able to write letters to the people they formerly visited. While federal prisons have been slow to re-open, about a third are back to permitting visits and volunteers are adjusting to the new post-COVID requirements.
PVS has also started recruiting new volunteer visitors, particularly for prisons where there are long waiting lists, or in remote areas where there are no visitors at all. It is estimated that nearly half of people incarcerated in federal prisons never receive a single visit, and it is known that people who have contact with the outside world do better both during their time inside and upon returning to their communities.
Finally, PVS is working on a virtual event scheduled for October 26 featuring Susan Burton, the activist, founder of A New Way of Life Reentry Project, and coauthor of the award-winning book Becoming Ms. Burton. Burton will be in conversation with David Luis “Suave” Gonzalez, PVS board member and creator of the Death by Incarceration and Suave podcasts.
Learn more: Prisoner Visitation and Support
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