Working within the criminal justice system reveals stark racial and ethnic disparities. Well-documented statistics show that Black/African Americans are incarcerated at disproportionately higher rates than their white counterparts, despite representing a minority of the overall population. According to the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), the most recent racial breakdown includes: 1.6% (2,447) Asian, 38.3% (59,487) Black, 2.9% (4,578) Native American, and 57.2% (88,797) White.

As a counselor working within the walls of a prison, death is an inevitable part of life—but the emotional weight of it is often overlooked, especially when it involves incarcerated individuals. During my time working in the criminal justice system, I’ve experienced death from many perspectives: former clients murdered months after their release, clients who died by suicide both in the community and inside prison, clients who died from drug overdoses, and clients grieving the death of a loved one while incarcerated.

Bold Beginnings Center focuses on providing a safe, welcoming, and professional space for all clients that receive services. The focus of this blog is addressing the intersectionality of mental health, criminal justice system, and community. A shared theme between these systems is STIGMA. Severe diagnoses such as schizophrenia, bipolar, PTSD, and many others have a negative stigma within communities, media, and our families. The criminal justice system has stigma surrounding one's involvement and even lack of involvement. Lastly, the community has the stigma of the type of people in any given area who are impacted by the criminal justice system and mental health. This will be a space that look at research, news articles, policies, pop culture, etc. that greatly influence these systems.