Amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, incarcerated individuals and their families need more support than ever. As such, we have seen an influx of advocating for prison reform and holding corporations such as Bell Canada accountable for their part in exploiting the current justice system to increase their bottom-line.

The workshop being proposed will have three parts: presentation, breakout session and teaching others. The presentation will focus on the current situation around the prison system and research techniques for attendee’s own movements. In the breakout sessions, attendees will have a chance to use their skills and create a short presentation using the sample questions. Once the breakout session has concluded, each group will explain the most effective research techniques and where the information was found. The key themes of this workshop would be COVID-19 realities, social movements and support of current/ previous incarcerated individuals.

A key principle in learning is the ability to teach others, by adding the research aspect attendees are not only learning additional research skills but also get to practice public speaking.

Angelique Dack (She/ Her) is a third-year Ontario Tech student specializing in Political Communication with a minor in Criminology and Justice. She currently works as the Student Engagement and Equity program assistant at Ontario Tech’s Student Life department; additionally, she serves as the Marketing Coordinator for Raise Your Voice, an Enactus project.