From Injustice to Social Justice Education: The Journey of Formerly Incarcerated Women of Color in Community College

<p>There is a growing rate of women of color in the U.S. prison system—their intersectional identities are hypercriminalized surrounding the nexus of oppressive barriers they experience (Annamma, 2017). The lack of awareness, understanding, and advocacy for carceral-impacted women of color in higher education has engendered an erasure. This qualitative research study explored and elevated the lived experiences and intersectional identities of formerly incarcerated women of color in postsecondary education. Through the lens of Latino critical race theory (LatCrit) and Chicana feminism, four methods of data collection took place—surveys, <em>cajitas, testimonios, </em>and reflective journaling. Formerly incarcerated women of color experienced the following barriers to and in college: (a) unhealed trauma, (b) chemical dependency, (c) lack of family support, (d) incarceration, (e) poverty, and (f) disability injustice. In contrast, the elevating opportunities they experienced in college included: (a) support from family, (b) Rising Scholars program, and (c) campus resources. Specifically, the praxis in the Rising Scholars program provided participants a sense of belonging that led them toward healing and self-empowerment to pursue their postsecondary education and life goals. Recommendations from this research provide guidance of praxis for the higher education system to eradicate oppressive barriers for formerly incarcerated women of color.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

PhD Education for Social Justice

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation: Open Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Education

Year dc:date.available

2024

Author dc:creator

• Sadat Ahadi, Hossna

• Cajitas
• Chicana feminism
• community college
• disability injustice
• formerly incarcerated women
• healing
• incarceration
• LatCrit
• liberation
• pláticas
• Rising Scholars
• self-empowerment
• social justice
• testimonios
• trauma
• and women of color
• Counseling
• Disability and Equity in Education
• Disability Studies
• Education
• Prison Education and Reentry

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digital.sandiego.edu/dissertations/1033

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digital.sandiego.edu:dissertations-2041