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Despite high rates of incarceration in California, the realities of imprisonment and the voices of those incarcerated are often unseen and unheard. This lack of visibility leads, in turn, to a lack of understanding, both regarding the scale of incarceration and, importantly, the life experiences and human condition of those incarcerated.
In order to document these voices and experiences, the Humanities Beyond Bars Oral History Project seeks to interview formerly incarcerated students enrolled on CSU campuses, incarceration scholars, and activists.
Interview topics include the formative life experiences of formerly incarcerated students; the experience of societal re-entry following incarceration; successes and challenges for formerly incarcerated students in pursuing a degree at CSU campuses; the history and function of CSU Project Rebound; and the scale and impact of incarceration in the CA Central Valley. This project is funded by grants from California Humanities and the Whiting Foundation, the Kegley Institute of Ethics, and the CSUB Historical Research Center.