I am myself – the result of a life in prison

To foment and qualify the debate on the rights of imprisoned people (communication and education); press the state to fulfill their constitutional role (research and actions); strengthen and promote the group as a relevant actor in the prison system (participation and associative action).

• Capacity building.
• Research.
• Incidência.
• Information and awareness raising.

From 2013 to 2016, the incarcerated population grew 50.1% with over 50.000 men and women in prison, without enough professionals to serve this population. The main consequence of this situation is that the people in prison and their families have no access to welfare programs destined to people in prison, to which they are entitled by law, affecting the economic and social lives of detainees and their families, including their children. An example of that is a financial resource called “confinement support”, destined to the families and children of detainees who are serving their sentences in closed or semi-open regimes, during the period covered by the Social Security system in Brazil (INSS). Many families report that despite being entitled to it, the detainees fail to apply for it due to the lack of necessary documentation or lack of information on the legal procedures to request it, even though it is quite a simple procedure.

A small group of former detainees gathered to call society’s attention on the real situation endured by the detainees inside prisons and work to improve this situation supporting this population after they are released. The fact that the members of this group had been in prison themselves and are fighting to overcame prejudice, the invisibility and lack of perspectives that are common to former detainees, allows a powerful interaction with the people who are currently incarcerated and with their families. The group aims to assist the prison population and their families, overcoming the difficulties posed by the bureaucratic processes surrounding the sentence execution and fight for the rights that are available but are not granted in many cases, pushing so that the right sentence can be served and the least impacts can be felt.

Front for Disincarceration of the State of Rio de Janeiro.

Apaderj – Association of Families and Friends of Incarcerated People of Rio de Janeiro.

State Mechanism to Prevent and Fight Torture of Rio de Janeiro.

Public Defender’s Office of Rio de Janeiro