‘Sing Sing’ Puts Justice In Focus
When people think of Alabama, most don’t imagine a diverse group of individuals sitting in a room imagining what a better approach to public safety might look like. But that scenario happens just as often Governor Kay Ivey tries to spend the state’s COVID relief dollars to build new prisons (often). Wednesday, July 31st, at The Summit AMC Theatre was one such occasion. People from all across Alabama made the drive to watch the film ‘Sing Sing’ and participate in a community conversation on the need for changes in the criminal justice mindset currently found in the United States.
Movie attendees were greeted in the lobby with a ‘Justice in Focus’ banner and a discussion with Alabama Values’ Justice in Focus partners followed after. The movie screening formally kicked-off the campaign, which looks beyond the state’s current incarceration system towards ideologies and methods that heal our communities and focus on rehabilitation. ‘Sing Sing’ is an A24 production that takes a look at the flaws of the current system while showing how little upliftments can go a very long way.
The film follows John “Divine G” Whitfield, played by Colman Domingo, and other men inside the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York. The prison has a theater program, of which Divine G was a founding member. The program offers men in the prison an opportunity to not just participate in plays for their peers, but to mentally escape from the walls entrapping them for brief moments while forming a brotherly bond with their fellow stagemates. Most of the actors in the film were also members of the actual Sing Sing theater program in real life, which added an even more inspiring layer to an already impactful movie watching experience.
‘Sing Sing’ followed the theater program but also showed the struggles many face while trying to obtain parole and how the current approach to public safety can keep reformed people in a cycle of incarceration without ever truly getting the opportunities needed to start over on a better path. Our Justice in Focus partners, Alabama Justice Initiative and The Beacon Center, along with The Flourish were the perfect segway from the movie to a discussion on how these systems are applied in Alabama—and what can be done to better them.
Veronica Johnson of Alabama Justice Initiative shared how the parole rate and strict interpretations of the three strikes rule in Alabama are harming our communities. She also shared how Alabama is one of only two states (along with Georgia) that doesn’t allow inmates to appear at their own parole hearing. Pastor Richard Williams shared how The Beacon Center and their Next Steps program apply preventive measures by helping the community obtain easy access to mental healthcare, employment opportunities, GED courses, and monthly meals where attendees share something good that has recently happened.
Eric Marable Jr. of The Flourish spoke about the nonprofit’s program that works with kids in Alabama youth detention centers. He shared how he deeply resonated with a monologue that centered around seeing everybody as valuable. The kids The Flourish works with are in need of these same lessons and support, and it was meaningful to see that level of hope played out on a large screen.
By the end of the night, Alabama felt one step closer towards a truly fair justice system. A room full of believers in a better world—including members of Birmingham SURJ, Alabama Books To Prisons Project, and so many more—came together to discuss what it could look like. Thank you to our screening partners in A24 and The Just Trust.