Music-Making in Generative Justice: Critical Criminology in Relationship with the Democratic Ideal

• In Event: Roundtable: Critical Criminology

Abstract

Generative Justice is a new criminological concept that rejects binary ways of thinking such as perpetrator or victim, responsible or not responsible, to envision collective ways of navigating and transforming harm. This roundtable explores how music-making collaborations that connect people inside and outside of prisons can contribute to our understanding of generative justice. Each participant works in the intersection of music-making and critical criminology. One, Gabe Rosales, works with Jail Guitar Doors (JGD) at RJ Donovan State prison on the border of San Diego and Mexico in California. This program is the first JGD program to record songs in the prison and post them on a SoundCloud. Nicole Morse has worked with the Community Hotline for Incarcerated People (CHIP) in Florida to produce an original album by system-impaired artists, Bending the Bars. Coming out June 11, 2025, incarcerated artists collaborated with outside musicians without efforts from carceral leadership. Mary Cohen, who used to lead a combined incarcerated and non-incarcerated choir, now partners incarcerated and non-incarcerated songwriters to build relationships through collaborative songwriting. As crime represents broken relationships, music-making, if facilitated effectively, can be a tool for rebuilding relationships. Such relational growth is vital for creating a democratic ideal.

Authors

• Mary Cohen, University of Iowa

• Nicole Morse, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

• Gabe Rosales, University of California, Irvine

• Shadd Maruna, University of Liverpool

• Alim Braxton, North Carolina Department of Corrections