Documentary on Prison Reform in Brazil Draws Disparate UF Partners
‘Unguarded’ sparks dialog on restorative justice mannequin for convicted offenders
A movie that explores the facility of affection, belief and self-discipline to return convicted criminals to profitable civic life in Brazil additionally gives a platform to indicate how disparate viewpoints can interact in wholesome conversations on the University of Florida and its surrounding group.
The documentary “Unguarded” will be screened Feb. 27 on the Hippodrome Cinema in downtown Gainesville, with the assist of a number of sponsors who deliver diversified views to constructing sturdy, wholesome civic bonds.
The sponsors embody the Hippodrome, a group performing arts company; AVSI-USA, a world improvement non-profit that supported manufacturing of the movie; and UF models that embody the Center for Latin American Studies, the Honors Program, the Hamilton Center for Classical and Civic Education, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, together with its Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Studies, the Center for Greek Studies, and the Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere.
“I think we can all agree that America’s sky-high rate of incarceration indicates that something is wrong in our society,” mentioned Trysh Travis, affiliate dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “Reasonable people may disagree on how to fix this. But we can’t find solutions that will work and have broad support unless people with diverse viewpoints and expertise can discuss and collaborate. Bringing all this academic and civic firepower together in one place is the way to spark such collaboration. It should be a great evening,” she mentioned.
Simonetta d’Italia Wiener, director of the award-winning documentary, will lead a panel dialogue following the 5:30 p.m. screening. Panelists embody Shon Hopwood, affiliate professor of legislation at Georgetown University; Patrick Mahoney, director of packages and re-entry for the Florida Department of Corrections; and Pre Shelton, group educator at Joseph House, a Catholic ministry based mostly in the Florida Panhandle. Hopwood and Shelton advocate for individuals who, like themselves, have skilled incarceration. Those wishing to attend should register in advance.
“Unguarded” profiles the Association for the Protection and Assistance of the Convicted (APAC), which has proven a brand new path for the troubled jail system in Brazil. It makes use of a restorative justice mannequin to exhibit that even these convicted of great crimes might be reworked into productive residents when incarceration focuses on restoration over punishment.
APAC’s strategy isn’t straightforward. Prisoners have a routine that runs from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and consists of necessary work, akin to cleansing the amenities, and training. While crime and recidivism charges have continued to extend in Brazil’s public prisons – the place rebellions and failure to fulfill human rights requirements are widespread – throughout the APAC system, they’ve steadily decreased over the previous 50 years.
The strategy is now being prolonged to different nations, though these behind it are fast to say it isn’t a mannequin that may merely be franchised.
Restorative justice, like that practiced at APAC prisons in Brazil, seems on the impacts of crime not simply on offenders but additionally on victims and the households of offenders. It seeks to restore the hurt and deal with the explanations for the offense. So, it engages with individuals coming from very completely different views on what has occurred.
Likewise, the UF sponsors for the Gainesville occasion symbolize a variety of pursuits.
“No group is more despised in society than those who commit crimes. Unfortunately, we tend to use them as mere objects or symbols to support a political agenda, whether it be ‘Tough on Crime’ or ‘Defund the Police’,” mentioned John Stinneford, director of the Hamilton Center and professor at UF’s Levin College of Law.
“My hope is that this film will enable us to discuss how to treat prisoners as human persons who should be held accountable for their actions but who are nonetheless worthy of love and respect,” Stinneford mentioned.
The Hamilton Center not too long ago started sponsoring occasions and offering undergraduate courses at UF. Its mission is “to help students develop the knowledge, habits of thought, analytical skills, and character to be citizens and leaders in a free society.” The middle’s strategy emphasizes European and American mental historical past, with roots in classical philosophy.
Another sponsor, the Center for Latin American Studies, additionally focuses on the western hemisphere however usually seems a bit farther south, to Latin American and the Caribbean. That consists of not simply influences from the United States and Europe but additionally the indigenous peoples who populated the realm.
“We have so many co-sponsors for this event because this problem can’t be owned by any one group or solved by any one approach,” mentioned Travis, the UF administrator and professor.
“I’m particularly excited to welcome undergraduate students from all our sponsoring organizations. When it comes to solving complex social problems, I’m putting more and more of my faith in this next generation and their cross-disciplinary approaches and tools. They are the creative, collaborative professionals that the world needs right now,” she mentioned.