WASHINGTON — A local women's group is helping women cope with the challenges they may face with life after prison.
“I think about my dad because he and I were really close,” said Brittney Floyd as she wiped tears from her eyes. Floyd is still processing her pain. She is a 23-year-old ex-felon because she wanted to save her dad from a lifetime behind bars.
“My father was identified as a lieutenant in a drug cartel and (during the police raid) the digital scale was found in close proximity to my room, so they had probable cause to say the drugs were mine. So, I copped out to a felony charge, so my father would get a date of release. His date is March 8, 2032,” Floyd said with a wide smile on her face but that smile quickly gave way to emotion too heavy to bear alone.
That’s why Floyd finds comfort in the WIRE: Women Involved in Reentry Efforts.
Lashonia Thompson-El is the founder, executive director and a D.C. native who served 18 years behind bars.
“It’s really difficult for women coming home trying to rebuild their life, heal from trauma, and be a mother,” explained Thompson-El, “I think black women have an extra burden because of the way our community is fractured everyone looks to ‘big mama’ for help. If I had a magic wand I would remove the stigma because reality is, we have millions of people in prison.”
Charnel Chaney was only 3 years old when her mom got locked up.
“I was still yearning for a mother for a long time,” she said, “even now, as my daughter is 11 years old I find myself struggling with what do I talk to her about and how do I interact with her at that age because I didn’t have that.”
The women of the WIRE help support each other and offer counseling, transportation and family reunification for newly released women offenders. Saundra Seegars says the founding members of WIRE were all close in jail and formed a family of their own. Now, on the outside, they are advocating for others.
“If women returning can focus on getting clean, it will change your life,” said Seegars, “I didn’t see my life this way but in April it will be 15 years and I haven’t been back to prison since.”
Tanisha Murden just wrote a motivational book and said, “I know that 90 percent of women are traumatized and it’s not trauma as adults it’s trauma from childhood so there needs to be a lot of healing.”
“There is prison pipeline for women and girls and its trauma,” added Thompson-El. So, the WIRE will continue to advocate for women and their families, offering support, counseling, advice and strength.
“The process is hard but if everybody is open to understating both perspectives the family can be rebuilt on a strong foundation,” said Chaney. “That resilience, once it develops in the weak spaces, you find strength,” said Floyd. Click here to learn more about the W.I.R.E. https://thewiredc.org/