Organization Helps And Empowers incarcerated Women

Tracy McKeithen is the Co-Founder of Women Initiating New Directions (WIND). Photo provided by WIND.
Tracy McKeithen is the Co-Founder of Women Initiating New Directions (WIND). Photo provided by WIND.

Organization Helps And Empowers  incarcerated Women 

By Tia Carol Jones

A non-profit organization is helping incarcerated women with their transition by providing them with the resources to find employment, housing and learn life skills. The hope is that with these skills the women will be empowered to live successful independent lives, and the program will reduce recidivism among its participants.  

Women Initiating New Directions (WIND) was co-founded in 2018 by Tracy McKeithen. McKeithen met a young mother who had been released from incarceration and began to work with her to provide resources to help her get her life back on track. Through trying to find resources for this mother, and finding out that there were not a lot of resources available, McKeithen and two other women decided to create the WIND Program.

WIND received grant funding from Healing Illinois and used that funding to develop the Writing for Empowerment program. Lithia Crafton is a WIND-Lived Experience Leader and apprentice. She said the program creates a space for the women to map out what they want to do with their lives, while also providing them with a safe space to share their lived experiences.

She said through the program, the women are able to express themselves through writing poetry, raps, short stories or autobiographies. She said the women are empowered because they are able to share their story their way, from their own perspective.

“It’s their own story to share and no one can tell it better than they can,” Crafton said.

Crafton was incarcerated herself, she participated in WIND, and was re-introduced to WIND and her writing coach when she returned home. She said she received such great feedback that it became an encouragement to her. Now, she facilitates the training for the other lived experience leaders in the program. She said it has been a great experience and it has been a great platform to help the community understand the value that WIND holds for the women in the program.

McKeithen said that giving the women in the program the opportunity to use their own words to talk about how they grew up and who they are is empowering for them. The work of participants from the Writing for Empowerment program is featured in an anthology called “Women Writing Their Futures.” It includes the poems and short stories of both incarcerated women and women who have returned to their communities. Other women who have participated in the program have also produced autobiographies about their lives. All of the books are available on Amazon.

McKeithen said that while working with the young mother in those early days, one thing she came to realize was that the woman was not what was documented on paper about her. Crafton said the one thing she wants people to know about women who are and have been incarcerated is that they are not their mistakes. She said women who come home from being incarcerated are worthy of receiving the services necessary to reduce recidivism. She said women coming home from incarceration really need support, resources and a second chance.

McKeithen said there are opportunities for people in the community to partner with WIND and work with the women participating in the program, either as volunteers for their programs and community-based events, or through financial support. Crafton said she would love for people in the community to also share their stories. She said that by other people in the community sharing their stories, it can bring about more understanding between the women in the program and the community.

For more information about Women Initiating News Directions, visit www.windprogram.org. For more information about Healing Illinois, visit healingillinois.gov.

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