Inmates’ children need in-person visits
Imagine being a young child with only one way to connect with your parent: through a video screen.
When we were six and nine years old, we could visit our incarcerated parents in person and by video. But correctional facilities are moving to replace in-person visits with video, and it scares us.
Children need to be able to visit and hug their parents. This Mother’s Day, we urge New York to support children’s relationships with their incarcerated parents by passing a bill to protect in-person visits in New York’s prisons and jails.
Families like ours are afraid that correctional facilities in New York will drastically reduce or eliminate visiting hours in favor of video conferencing — an alarming trend that has been years in the making and was only exacerbated by the pandemic. In a 2019 survey by the Marshall Project, more than a third of respondents across 32 states indicated they had no option to visit their loved one in person. Some jails only offer visits during the school day, which means children would have to miss school to visit. To make matters worse, some companies and jails profit off families by charging $5 to $15 per 30minute video session. This is expensive, especially if you talk every day, and many families don’t have access to the technology and reliable internet service that virtual visits require.
The Protect In-Person Visits Bill (S3318/A6648) aims to protect existing in-person visits in New York’s prisons and jails and require weekend and evening visiting hours. Passing this bill will support the well-being of both children and parents, help our parents succeed when they come home and reduce harm for families — especially Black and brown families like ours who are disproportionately impacted by the justice system.
There are approximately 105,000 children across New York with an incarcerated parent. In-person visits provide a crucial opportunity for children to bond and heal from the trauma created by being separated from our parents. There is nothing like seeing your parent in person, where you can hug them and have private conversations. Visiting in person also helps our parents feel less isolated and more hopeful, and allows for us to dream of our futures together.
Strong family bonds can also help our parents succeed when they come home. Research demonstrates that maintaining and strengthening family and community ties is critical to preventing recidivism and promoting lasting reentry.
We also cannot ignore that because of systemic racism and criminalization of poverty, families of color and those with low incomes are disproportionately affected by incarceration. Protecting visiting is a matter of racial and economic justice.
We miss our parents. We want to stay connected. We need help from our legislators. This Mother’s Day, we urge New York state to show young people like us that our voices — and our relationships with our parents — matter. Now is the time to pass the Protect In-Person Visits Bill.