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‘Serve Our Sisters’ Event Assists ‘Lunch And Learn’ At Women Returning From Prison University Area CDC
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Helping a woman success- fully adjust to society after in- carceration can start with a gesture as simple as giving her a tube of toothpaste.
On Sunday, more than 200 volunteers from through- out Tampa Bay gathered at the University Area Commu- nity Development Corpora- tion to pack up toothpaste, soap, sanitary napkins, and other personal items into goodie bags for distribution for women returning home from prison.
Hosted by civil rights grassroots organization, Color of Change, the ‘Serve Our Sis- ters’ event was designed to in- troduce the nonprofit to those interested in social justice is- sues while uniting them be- hind a cause, said Candice Fortin, deputy field director for Color of Change PAC.
Volunteers lunched on fried chicken and macaroni and cheese and participated in ice breakers before - pack- ing up dozens of white bags.
They also listened as Quiana Malone shared her story of being a four-time con- victed felon turned business owner and author.
Malone, from Jackson- ville, Florida, said her success stems from a strong desire to overcome her past.
“I met someone who said ‘if you keep going, the door will open for you’,” she said. “That’s what I’ve been doing.”
Tangela Serls, of Tampa, doesn’t consider her- self an activist, but felt com- pelled to volunteer.
“I know enough about (prison reform) that it’s a so- cial justice issue and some- thing needs to be done about it,” she said.
Founded in 2005, Color of Change bills itself as the na- tion’s largest online racial jus- tice organization. Its campaigns have targeted the criminal justice system, Hol- lywood, and the 2016 elec- tions. The organization counts more than three mil- lion members nationwide with about 15,000 living in the Tampa Bay area. Color of Change also has a presence in Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Or- lando, and Miami, Fortin said.
While Color of Change is open to anyone interested in volunteering with social or
The public is invited to a free ‘Lunch and Learn’ event on Thursday, June 14, 2018, 11:30a.m.–1p.m.,atthe University Area CDC, where participants will learn about the STEPS for Success Pro- gram.
Although a free event, reg- istration is required. Register at https://uacdclunchan-
dlearn.eventbrite.com. Or, for questions, contact the Direc- tor of Development, Jaree Ervin, (813) 558-5212, ext. 210, or jervin@uacdc.org.
The planning tools for the STEPS program are: 1) Pre- scription for Prosperity; 2) Individualized Goal Plan (IGP); and 3) Network of Support.
Friends (from left) Shayla Tolbert, Terri Bazley, and Leila Rugumbarara attend the Color of Change event at the Univer- sity Area Community Development Corporation.
racial justice campaigns, Black women made up the majority of participants at Sunday’s event – and that was by design, Fortin said.
“We keep Black women centered,” she said. “They are our core demographic.”
They also make up the ma- jority of women within the United States criminal justice system. While the rate of im- prisonment for Black women declined by 47 percent be- tween 2000 and 2014, the im- prisonment rate in 2014 for Black women was twice the rate than their white counter- parts, according to a report produced by criminal justice research and advocacy center, The Sentencing Project.
Women of all races gener- ally “face severely limited ac- cess to social resources such as public housing, transitional income, and sustainable em- ployment upon reentering the community,” the report states.
A bag of soap and personal care items alone may not pre- vent formerly incarcerated women from encountering a rough return to society, but it can help make the journey easier, said Jazz T., of Tampa.
Jazz – who declined to give her last name – said she knows what it’s like to experi- ence that adjustment. But Jazz said she was lucky be- cause she had family to lean on for support.
Many formerly incarcer- ated women are not as fortu- nate and some eventually go back to prison because they cannot acclimate to society, she said.
Giving that woman some- thing as simple as a tube of toothpaste makes a huge dif- ference because it shows her
someone cares, Jazz said. “When you come out of in- carceration you’ve got a lot of things against you,” she said. “That means a lot to someone
who doesn’t have anything.” For more information about Color of Change, visit
www.colorofchange.org.
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