Join Us for a Unique Conference at Maine State Prison

“We belong together, with the rainbows and the butterflies.”
 
Last year, an inmate at Maine State Prison sang those sweet words as part of the closing ceremonies of the Maine Hospice Council’s conference on aging prisoners. It was a moving song, and before playing it in front of the large audience he explained that he had written it behind bars for his young daughter. With several years left on his sentence, he was destined to miss her childhood.

I was particularly touched by this moment at last year’s conference because it humanized a group of people who are too often dehumanized. Rarely do we get the chance to hear from prisoners directly, and certainly not as part of an all-day conference that puts a microscope on their rehabilitation and on the good work they are doing behind bars.At America's Expense

The Maine Hospice Council runs a program at the State Prison that gives inmates the chance to provide end-of-life hospice care to fellow prisoners. These volunteers shared some fascinating insights into the experience during a panel discussion, while other presenters – who ranged from academics to politicians to corrections officials – spoke about the challenges of an aging prison population.
 
Last year’s event was such a success that it’s been doubled this year! Now a two-day conference – on June 25^th and 26^th – this year we’ll go even deeper into issues such as end-of-life care for inmates, overpopulation of prisons, and how the United States compares to Canada in terms of aging prisoners.
 
The ACLU of Maine co-sponsored last year’s conference and we’re excited to be doing the same this year. In addition, Shenna will be delivering an hour-long presentation on mass incarceration and the need for sentencing reform. Some of the themes she’ll talk about were addressed in a comprehensive report issued by the ACLU last year, which you can find here.
 
If you’d like to attend, follow this link to register. You can come for one day or for both, and as an ACLU member you’ll get to sign-up at the reduced rate offered to Hospice Council members. One thing to keep in mind: Even though the conference is on June 25^th and 26^th, the registration deadline is June 15^th due to security requirements at the prison. So don’t wait to sign-up!