Corrections_Today_May-June_2022_Vol.84_No.3

n Education

The invitation’s in the mail Is the correctional perspective missing from the public’s education on mass incarceration?

By Courtney McCoy

Introduction E ducating the American public is an enormous responsibility that falls upon those capable, those willing and those eager to place themselves in front of the class and deliver the material. Those entrusted with educating the public should be experts in their discipline. This sentiment is especially true when engaging the public on sensitive, divisive or emotionally charged topics. The definition of an expert can differ depending upon the context. Is one considered an expert if they are an educator in the discipline? Is an individual an expert if they are a researcher in the field? Are they an expert if they are an advocate? Is the expert a practitioner? In a collaborative effort, all parties can be an expert. The National Park Service has a national park site at Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay in California. Recently, this national treasure opened a new permanent exhibit. The new exhibit is located in the former Band Practice Room in the Cell House and focuses on mass in carceration in America. It is called The Big Lockup: Mass Incarceration in the United States and was developed to educate the public on mass incarceration issues facing the country today. 1 This exhibit is not the only one of its kind in the United States. A search on Google for “exhibits on mass incarceration in the U.S.” provides search results for other exhibitions with similar themes, including an exhibition located at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. →

28 — May/June 2022 Corrections Today