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Freedom Collage by the Students at Metro Correctional Center
Freedom can sometimes mean freedom from oneself, free from negative emotions like pain and hurt or hate, free from ridicule and judgment or persecution, and free from the expectations of others. Freedom can sometimes mean living in a world that does not revolve around money, power, and greed. Sometimes freedom means the ability to think…
Read MoreClemente Course: Literature, Women and Myth – Whitworth Women’s Facility, Winter 2022
Clemente Course: Literature Common Good Atlanta, Clemente Course Whitworth Women’s Facility, Winter 2022 Instructor: Amy Bonnaffons [email protected] Women and Myth Image: Cecilia Bonilla Course Description This course will engage with myths written by and about women, from various cultures, from ancient history to the present. The authors of our texts—most of whom identify…
Read MorePain in our Stories by Michael Clark
I was reminded of a bit of wisdom I gained in prison recently. I had a friend going through rough times, and he started venting some of his frustrations and concerns to me. After a minute, he stopped and laughed, then said, “You know, Mike, I almost forgot you were in prison. Here I am…
Read MoreYOU ARE INVITED: CGA Documentary
YOU ARE INVITED! We are excited to announce two upcoming screenings of Common Good Atlanta: Breaking Down the Walls of Mass Incarceration. Wednesday, January 19, 7 p.m. @ Morehouse College Human Rights Film Festival, Virginia Lacy Jones Exhibition Hall, Robert W. Woodruff LibraryContact: Kara Walker or Jenn Sapp, [email protected], 470-639-0531 Thursday, January 20, 7…
Read MoreAn Interview with David Evans, CGA Alumnus
How did you get involved with CGA? I was working at the prison’s “print shop.” This was my work detail. One of my co-workers, Kane Miller, would take Wednesdays off every week and go to some “literature class.” I thought that was interesting, but I knew they wouldn’t let both of us stay out…
Read MoreDifferent Reentry Approaches: Part 1 by Michael Clark
The numbers are clear. Incarceration rates are high (810 per 100,000 as of 2019) and have grown for decades. The number of prisons in each state is growing (1,833 state prisons, 110 federal prisons in 2020 versus 1,584 state prisons, and 84 federal prisons in 2000). The amount of money spent has significantly increased in…
Read MoreMeet the CGA Interns
Name: Lola Cleavaland (She/Her) School: Emory University Major: Political Science and Economics “I had the pleasure of interning for Common Good Atlanta for almost two years while studying at Emory University. I worked with CGA in multiple capacities as a peer tutor in the classroom and an assistant site director researching pedagogy in prison classrooms.…
Read MoreI Remember by Jerry Smiley
I Remember I remember sixteen in ninety-three. I remember seventeen in ninety-four. I remember hearing boy you losing your mind? I remember Incarceration in ninety-five. I remember ooh-wee you going to that Alto spot. I remember hearing those words and my heart nearly jumping out my chest. I remember diesel fumes and cigarettes smoke. I…
Read MoreUS History: Changes in the Land
Instructor: Louise Milone Fall 2021 Whitworth Women’s Facility The Whitworth students will be studying America’s development and its impact on the environment. Description: “In the late 1970s, a young graduate history student wrote a paper that in 1980 became an award-winning book. It is slim volume, but it makes a singularly important point – every…
Read MoreDifferent Re-entry Approaches: A Series by Michael Clark
I never understood nor thought of how challenging re-entry posed until I got out two years ago. As I left, I walked into a new life and a new set of obstacles I was not prepared for. I could not have anticipated the stigma that came from having a record in social and professional settings.…
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