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The Documentary: Mass incarceration: From the inside

Mass incarceration: From the inside

19/03/2022 GMT

BBC World Service - The Documentary, Mass incarceration: From the inside

Ryan Burvick hears from those who have been through the prison system

Ryan Burvick hears from those who have been through the prison system.

The US has nearly 5% of the world's population – but 25% of the world’s prisoners. In the last 40 years, the US prison population has increased 500%, making it the world’s leading jailer.

Music producer Ryan Burvick runs a rejuvenation programme on Rikers Island, America's most notorious jail. Now those who have been through the prison system open up to him about their experiences: why cash for bail is a problem, how the plea bargain works against inmates, why a felony conviction destroys life chances, and why black Americans are five times more likely to be incarcerated than white. Ryan also hears from criminologist experts and a former corrections commissioner about what should happen next, from reform to abolition.

(Photo: Hands through bars. Credit: iStock)

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