Mass incarceration affects millions of Americans, and even though 1 in every 4 adults has a prior conviction, returning citizens face significant discrimination. A prior conviction can make it hard to find employment and a place and the right to drive. People who have been incarcerated are prohibited from employment opportunities in law enforcement, the school system, and hospitals, and oftentimes employers automatically reject applicants due to a felony conviction. It can also make it hard to pursue education and to pursue a professional discipline such as nursing, medicine, teaching, real estate, insurance, transportation, financial services, and the practice of law.

During this panel, speakers who have been impacted by the criminal justice system will share their stories and offer suggestions for how attendees can actively practice anti-racism and support criminal justice reform. This panel is part of Illuminating the Darkness: Our Carceral Landscape exhibition programming and funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, visit cah.ucf.edu/fpep/illuminatingdarkness/

Featuring formerly incarcerated artists and activists Ruben Saldaña, Gale Buswell, Marquis McKenzie, Jason Fronczek, Daniel McCarthy Clifford, Christopher Etienne, Terrell Blount and Jhafis Quintero.