Healing Circles
Healing Circles began as a response to the mental health impacts of incarceration — impacts that extend beyond returning citizens to their families and loved ones.
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Today, we host monthly circles that provide safe, supportive spaces where people can share their stories, process trauma, and heal together. These gatherings center community, dignity, and restoration, helping individuals and families rebuild their lives after incarceration.
Cages Aren’t Care. Communities Are.
Our society too often punishes mental illness instead of treating it. In Erie County, nearly 60% of people in county jails receive treatment for mental health needs, and the demand for substance use services — especially for opioid and co-occurring addictions — continues to grow.
But incarceration doesn’t heal. Prisons worsen mental health conditions, exposing people to:
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Isolation from loved ones
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Loss of autonomy and control
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Unpredictable rules and chronic stress
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Violence, overcrowding, and trauma
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Solitary confinement and long-term harm
These impacts don’t end at release — they follow people home and into their communities. Prisons are not care. It’s time to stop criminalizing mental illness and invest in real, community-based support rooted in dignity and healing.