Nationwide, women’s state prison populations grew 834% over nearly 40 years, more than double the rate of men. Women are currently the fastest-growing prison population, yet their trajectory to penitentiary is much different. Incarcerated women experience higher levels of prior victimization than men, and much more extensive gender-based violence than non-incarcerated women. Prior victimization, specifically childhood sexual and physical abuse, are nearly universal experiences for women prisoners, leaving them vulnerable to situations that persuade, force or trick them into criminal activity.

The criminal justice system rarely considers how a history of gender-specific abuse and resistive violence or other offenses are interconnected. This panel will discuss their work advocating for the rights of criminalized survivors, their lived experiences with prisons and the criminal justice system, and how gendered abuses make women more vulnerable to incarceration. This conversation will also address what gender-sensitive and trauma-informed understanding and interventions can disrupt this injust pathway to prison.