Program Description

Fifty years ago, the United States embarked on a path of mass incarceration, leading to a staggering increase in the prison population. Today, almost 2 million individuals – disproportionately Black Americans – are incarcerated in our nation’s prisons and jails. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the prison population has grown nearly 500% since 1973.

The Sentencing Project and a coalition of advocates, experts, and partners are launching a public education campaign, 50 Years and a Wake Up: Ending The Mass Incarceration Crisis In America. The campaign raises awareness about this crisis and its devastating impact on communities and proposes more effective crime prevention strategies for our country. These PSAs emphasize the need for change and feature Kemba and Joel, who were both formerly incarcerated. The PSAs end with the phrase “It’s time for a wake-up.” The use of ‘wake up’ is a double entendre referencing both a wake-up call and a colloquial phrase that incarcerated people sometimes use to describe the life of their sentence plus one day (e.g. “I have 20 years and a wake up”). Viewers are directed to SentencingProject.org to learn more.

Campaign Mission