The University of North Carolina, Greensboro, collaborated with universities nationwide to create and host “States of Incarceration,” an exhibit and opportunity for conversation from coast to coast. We at WAAC were thrilled that two simple questions met everyone who viewed the show: “What is a Crime? Who is a Criminal?”

At one of UNCG’s events held at the International Civil Rights Center and Museum, I had the opportunity to meet several changemakers including Sherrill Roland, Lamonte Armstrong, and Tiffany.

Sherrill spoke about his wrongful incarceration and his resulting MFA performance piece, The Jumpsuit Project. “The more and more I’ve talked to people about what went on, the more and more liberated I felt. This is me,” Roland said. “I didn’t want to hide it. I spent a lot of time hiding the fact that this stuff was going on. In the sense of getting everything exonerated, that’s like hiding it again. My heart’s been broken too much to forget or suppress those kind of emotions.”

Lamonte shared what got him through: “I just kept telling myself, ‘pretend you’re an inmate today.’ For 18 years, that’s what I’d tell myself every morning.” Lamonte Armstrong spent 18 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. “I have a Pardon of Innocence from the governor, but people still look at me like I have an M written on my forehead.”

And Tiffany talked about how lock-up locks out families: “Incarceration prevents our ability to connect with one another. Our ability to love.”