The School of Social Work, the Division of Student Affairs, and the Undergraduate Student Organization will host a screening and panel discussion of Ava DuVernay’s Oscar-nominated documentary, 13th, on Thursday, April 6th, at 5 p.m. in the Campus Center’s Multi-Purpose Room. This event is free and open to all, though advanced registration is strongly encouraged. Light refreshments will be served at the event.
The title of the documentary references the 13th Amendment of the US Constitution, which reads, ““Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States…” The progression from that second qualifying clause to the current rate of mass criminalization and the state of the American prison industry is easily and articulately laid out by DuVernay, with a host of featured guests throughout the film.
After the film, representatives from the Justice Policy Institute in Washington, DC; the National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated; and the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice will discuss the film in a panel format.