Freedom & Captivity is a locally-focused, community-based collective led by the concerns and interests of people most impacted by the criminal legal system and incarceration. Freedom & Captivity was founded in 2020 to open community spaces for collectively envisioning alternatives to incarceration and to ensure that those with the most direct experience are the ones shaping new narratives about how to keep communities safe and initiate pathways of repair and restoration in the wake of harm.
The Collective includes incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, never incarcerated and justice-impacted people who work together to excavate and record the knowledges of people affected by incarceration in order to challenge popular narratives about who is incarcerated and the presumption that incarceration is necessary for public safety, accountability in the wake of harm, and justice. Freedom & Captivity includes those who have caused harm, those who have experienced harm, and those whose family members have caused and/or experienced harm. The other projects of the Collective can be viewed on the Freedom & Captivity website.