The Nuances of Reentry for (and among) Formerly Incarcerated Mothers of Color

• In Event: Intersectional Approaches to Reentry and Reintegration Research

Abstract

Criminological literature has established that most women offenders have children under 18 and formerly incarcerated women may enact motherhood as a resource for reintegration after their release from imprisonment (Brown & Bloom, 2009; Hays, 2009). Yet, cultural and social-structural variations across and within racial-ethnic lines may shape experiences of motherhood. To examine the integration of gender, parenthood and racial-ethnic background in women’s reintegration, I draw upon interview data with formerly incarcerated mothers of African American, West Indian, and Hispanic descent. The findings capture how formerly incarcerated women navigate motherhood and how this process influences their reintegration after incarceration. This paper also highlights perceived ethnic differences in reentry experiences such as the acceptance and assistance they received (or did not receive) from family members. These findings contribute to the growing literature on prisoner reentry and they also have implications for reentry research, which often focuses on male-dominated narratives and obscures the racial-ethnic differences and parental experiences of African American, Hispanic, and West Indian mothers.

Author

• Janet Garcia-Hallett, University of Missouri-Kansas City