Locking up youth is certainly a sign we as a community have failed somewhere along the line to provide the proper safety net to make them productive tax paying members of society. Their paths are generally determined from abuse and neglect and prison rarely helps them to regain their lost footing.
Steve Davis spent several years photographing the youth incarcerated in Washington State. The photos are startling and certainly sobering. Someone’s son, someone’s brother, someone’s father. You can read more about his project here. The photos are haunting and if you know much about “the system” in place to help them once they get out it will make your heart break, rarely to do these youth have a chance to break the pattern.
If you’d like to become more educated about what a youth’s journey might be in the criminal justice system take a look at the Frontline film called Prison State about Kentucky.
Take a moment today to think what small or big step you can take today to keep vulnerable young people out of harm’s way. Just being there as a decent role model can make a huge different. Bravo to the Big Brother & Sister Program.
The Curious Autodidact 
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