Episode Details

Episode Synopsis:  What is the fate of Craigsville, Virginia after a prison closed in the small, rural town?  We’re envisioning the future of Craigsville and investigating how decarcerating the economy can become a win for all.

This show is made possible by you! To become a sustaining member go to https://LauraFlanders.org/donate Thank you for your continued support!

Description: What happens to a small town when a prison shuts down? The Augusta Correctional Center employed many residents and brought business to Craigsville, Virginia, a two square-mile, 900-person town located in the Shenandoah Valley. But when the prison closed in the summer of 2024 with minimal warning and no time for planning, Craigsville residents and the town’s economy were hit hard. In this special report, Laura Flanders & Friends correspondents Chelsea Higgs Wise and Lewis Raven Wallace head to Craigsville to learn about how the town is struggling, possible solutions from locals, and the larger questions around our country’s prison industrial complex. How can small, rural communities be supported in a sustainable transition away from a carceral economy? Join us as we envision the future of Craigsville and investigate how decarcerating the economy can become a win for all. Chelsea Higgs Wise is a community organizer based in Richmond, Virginia whose work focuses on empowering Black communities economically and educationally. She is co-founder and director of Marijuana Justice, a Black-led organization established to repair the harms of the drug war. Durham, North Carolina-based Lewis Raven Wallace is an independent journalist, author, and the Abolition Journalism Fellow at Interrupting Criminalization. Plus, a commentary from Laura on what could happen to the Augusta Correctional Center under the Trump administration.

“At one point there were 43 institutions in the Virginia Departments of Corrections . . . That number has dramatically decreased as a result of measures put in place, such as incentive credits, the juvenile parole bill, and other pieces of legislation that helped sentencing.” - Sincere Allah

“What I would say is that building these prisons has not changed communities. It hasn't helped people inside. It hasn't helped create all these amazing jobs . . . Instead of investing $1.5 billion in our prisons, parole, probation, what if that was invested in communities?” - Margaret Breslau

“Augusta Correctional opened in 1985. Probably at least half of the population here was working over there at that time. And it boosted the community greatly . . , boosted the town operational costs also. Kind of devastating for them to leave.” - Richard L. Fox

“There's a gorgeous gym in [the prison] that is just full of equipment that these young people could very much get something out of. There's a beautiful library in there. There's two ball fields there. There's plenty of office space. It could be turned into a lot of things.” - Tracy Martin

Correspondents:

•  Lewis Raven Wallace: Journalist & Activist, Durham, North Carolina

•  Chelsea Higgs Wise: Journalist & Policy Advocate, Richmond, Virginia

Guests:

•  Sincere Allah: State Organizer, REFORM Alliance

•  Margaret Breslau: Co-Founder, Virginia Prison Justice Network

•  Pam L. C