Media
"I am not a number. I am a human first, a mother, a friend, a sister, an aunt, an organizer, an advocate for the voices behind bars. We need to end mass incarceration so society can stop using it as a tool to control marginalized communities and give women of color a fighting chance. And I believe we can."
Miyhosi Benton,
WJP Associate Director of Advocacy & Strategy
Domestic Violence & Trauma
New York State Bar Association Journal · Domestic Violence Survivor-Defendants: New Hope for Humane and Just Outcomes, March 2020
The Appeal · A New York Law Could Reduce Sentences for Domestic Violence Survivors. Why Are Judges Reluctant to Apply It? February 24, 2020
State of New York Press Release · Governor Cuomo Signs Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act, May 14, 2019
The Nation · Survivors of Domestic Violence Deserve Clemency, Not Prison Cells, December 21, 2015
HuffPost · The U.S. Is Depressingly Good At Putting Women Behind Bars, November 24, 2015
Women’s Building
NewNowNext · Forced To Serve 10 Years In A Men’s Prison, A Trans Activist Demands Change, December 15, 2017
BuzzFeed · Keila Pulinario Thought Prison Was Tough. Then She Had To Find A Job, December 7, 2017
Self · This Former Prison Will Soon Be a Hub for Women’s Rights Organizations, September 12, 2017
The Culture Trip’s Bayview Series · Transformative Power of Art, March 6, 2017
The Culture Trip’s Bayview Series · Women & the Prison System, March 2, 2017
The Nation · This Building Was Once a Notorious Women’s Prison. Now It’s Becoming a Center for Feminist Organizing, February 22, 2017
HuffPost · Notorious New York Prison Is Reclaimed By The Women It Once Caged, January 18, 2017
The Village Voice · A Women’s Prison in Chelsea Will Be Transformed, November 21, 2016
The New York Times · Former Prison for Women to Become a Place That Serves Them, November 11, 2015
HuffPost · Inside A Notorious Women’s Prison Before Its Revolutionary Makeover, November 5, 2015
Reproductive Justice
Keynote Address (video) · The Convening on Pregnancy in Correctional Settings, December 10, 2017
HuffPost · Providing Free Pads And Tampons To Incarcerated Women Is About More Than Hygiene, June 23, 2016
Public News Service · Cuomo Signs Anti-Shackling Bill into Law, December 24, 2015
HuffPost · New York Bans ‘Barbaric’ Practice Of Shackling Pregnant Inmates, December 23, 2015
State of New York Press Release · Governor Cuomo Signs Legislation to Prohibit Shackling of Pregnant Inmates During Transportation, December 22, 2015
MomsRising · New York Expands the Rights of Pregnant Women Not to Be Shackled, December 22, 2015
The Nation · After Giving Birth, These Women Were Placed in Handcuffs, Leg Irons, and Waist Chains, December 2, 2015
Featured News and Articles
“Belly of the Beast” NAWJ Screening & Panel
WJP was honored to participate in a May 20, 2021 virtual panel discussion following a private screening of “Belly of the Beast,” a documentary film
Trans Day of Visibility 2021
This March, in observance of Transgender Day of Visibility and Women’s History Month, WJP was proud to join in solidarity with the hundreds of feminist
WJP Infographic: Pregnancy, Childbirth & Shackling
WJP is pleased to announce the release of Incarcerated Women: Pregnancy, Childbirth & Shackling, which highlights the dehumanizing and deeply harmful practices endured by pregnant
Belly of the Beast
WJP is excited to help spread the word about Belly of the Beast, a documentary by Erika Cohn which exposes unconscionable reproductive injustices in California’s
NY State Bar Association Journal, March 2020 Issue
WJP was featured in this article about the 2019 Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act in the March 2020 issue of New York State Bar Association
WJP Infographic: Incarcerated Mothers & Their Children
The majority of the women incarcerated in the US are mothers, and they face enormous challenges maintaining contact with children: being placed at great distances