Jami'an: supporting families separated by prison
Introduction
What is Jami’an?
This resource provides support to families whose loved ones are in prison, on how to navigate the prison system. It provides basic information on how to find out where a loved one is, how to contact them and arrange visits, and send money and parcels.
We hope the resource will help remove some of the fear and sense of isolation that comes with trying to make sense of the prison system and communicating with it.
The Need
This resource has been created at a time when Muslims make up 18% of the prison population (as opposed to 6.5% of the general population) – a record high[1]. This means that more and more families have loved ones that have been taken from them and locked away.
This is not a normal situation for families to be in and can cause a lot of stress and anxiety. It’s natural to feel overwhelmed trying to navigate the legal and prison system, especially when also dealing with the sense of loss from a loved one being removed from the home. Imprisonment affects individuals, families and whole communities - socially, financially, emotionally, psychologically, and physically.[2]
When individuals come into contact with the so-called criminal justice system so do their families and loved ones. We’ve heard from many Muslims that this is not always a positive experience or they have not received proper support to understand administrative processes. They have not known where to ask for help or were reluctant to challenge a discriminatory system that community members have had negative experiences with.
[1] As of March 2024. See: https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN04334/SN04334.pdf
[2] See the Collective Punishment Campaign (CPC), which aims to raise awareness of and tackle the impact of parental imprisonment on families, and in particular children, in the UK. https://collectivepunishment.uk/
What We Did
The resource was developed in consultation with experts including prison chaplains and community Imams to respond to the challenges families face in navigating the prison complex. It is designed to ease this pressure and stress, so that families can focus on providing emotional support to their loved ones in prison. The resource is intended to give people confidence to understand and engage with the prison system, especially where there is an understandable lack of trust.
The resource is grounded in Islam’s approach to justice, which is rooted in understanding the context in which any harm takes place, focusing on the repair of relations without causing more harm.
Jami’an in Arabic translates to ‘all together’ - all together we can support those facing challenges to find a better way to live.
For more information about the resource and to receive hard copies of it, please email us at info@maslaha.org
This resource can also be translated into other languages. Please contact us at info@maslaha.org to request Jami’an in your language of preference.
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