Quaker witness in the criminal justice system
Melanie Jameson, convenor of the Quakers in Criminal Justice (QICJ) working group, shares some actions Quakers can take ahead of National Prisons Week.
National Prisons Week (in England and Wales) runs from October 12-18 and has been established for nearly 50 years. We as Quakers are encouraged to consider the criminal justice system (CJS) in its widest sense.
During this week, we pray for and hold in the Light all concerned: victims of crime, prisoners and their families, along with those working in the CJS including David Lammy, now Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice.
Taking stock of the crisis in criminal justice
This comes at a time when prisons continue to be chronically overcrowded and fail to retain staff in a challenging situation where frustrations can boil over into violence. Recalls to prison are at an all-time high as an under-funded Probation Service struggles to cope. Labour has carried out reviews, some of which are feeding into the Sentencing Bill currently making its way through Parliament, but the problems are deep-rooted and systemic. A former Quaker Prison Chaplain continues to highlight the issues of neglected maintenance and staff low morale at HMP Wandsworth.
It is a time for QICJ to take stock and decide what we wish to highlight to the wider family of Friends – bearing in mind the national message from the Churches, articulated as follows: 'Prisoners' Sunday (Oct 12) marks the first day of the ecumenical Prisons Week, a week of prayer which raises awareness of the issues faced by those affected by the criminal justice system. The theme this year is 'Jesus looked at him and loved him' (Mark 10:21), and he looks at you and loves you too.' The message concludes with a plea that we would amplify: 'Ask yourself if there is one thing you as an individual, or as a church, can do to help any of the people for whom you are praying'.
Quaker Prison Chaplains
After some consideration, QICJ has decided to focus on the ministry of our criminal justice frontline workers, Quaker Prison Chaplains (QPCs), who have to cope with the challenges and frustrations of a difficult environment, while providing encouragement and nurturing faith. So, what can we all do to support them? We ask Friends to find out who the QPCs are in your Area Meeting (AM) or Local Meeting (LM) and enquire what they might need, in addition to faithfully holding them in the Light. Do they require funding for any special activity? Would they like a subscription to the Friend for their Chaplaincy? Could we go further and enquire if they need visitors at their Meetings for Worship? This is a very worthwhile activity that I have now been doing for ten years. The Clerk to the QPC Committee has described what she would value from Friends in the autumn edition of the QICJ newsletter.
What meetings can do
In addition, we are taking the opportunity to remind Friends of QICJ's initiative to welcome former prisoners into Meetings, taking safeguarding considerations into account. Do take a look at our 'Welcoming All' booklet, available to download from our homepage, which outlines the issues involved and takes you through the process of preparing to welcome someone who has worshipped in prison and now wishes to continue their spiritual practices in the community. You can contact qicjclerk@gmail.com to receive a hard copy by post.
'Welcoming All' was presented to Friends at the September meeting of the BYM Safeguarding Network so this would be a good time to raise the issue with your LM and AM because the seeds of awareness are already sown. The next step could be joining the Churches/Meetings in the Welcome Directory who have already indicated that they are prepared to open their doors to people who are looking for a worshiping group on release from prison. Training and advice are available from the independent church safeguarding agency 'thirtyone:eight'. Since safeguarding is a vital part of the picture, the BYM Safeguarding Officer is an obvious source of help and support, email safe@quaker.org.uk.
To those who question whether QICJ is forgetting the victims of crime, we would say that helping prison leavers to integrate into communities is a proven way of reducing future victims – and the focus of the 2024 Swarthmore Lecture.
In Scotland 'Prisoners Week' runs from November 16-23, with the theme "Crossroads: What Next?" emphasizing moments of choice, challenge, and change. You can find resources and information on the Prisoners Week Scotland website.
