Dr. West speaks with WBEZ about Statesville prison closing
Dr. Phyllis West, Director of the Social Justice Initiative at Governors State University, spoke with WBEZ’s part of the Illinois Coalition of Higher Ed in Prison (IL-CHEP) Steering Committee to educate incarcerated people at Statesville Prison. The prison is closing at the end of September because of a failing facility.
West, part of the steering committee of IL-CHEP, has been teaching a restorative justice class at the Joliet-area prison since July and recently learned six of her 30 students had been moved to another facility without notice.
She was emotional as she discussed the removal of her students.
“They were ripped out of class. These people are gone and I will never see them again.”
Calling the class the most transformative experience of her life, West said the power of education was transparent among her students, as well.
“It is their lives. It breathes life into them and creates a community and stability.”
Click here for the full conversation.
