It's absolutely critical, and it's the foundation of everything we do here. A woman's pathway into prison is a terrible journey, filled with trauma, abuse, and marginalization of all sorts. And her pathway into crime has often included drug use and misguided attempts to manage the financial burdens she has faced without her having the skills to get employment to be able to care of her family members.
When you look at the number of women in prison compared to the number of men, you will see that there are only about 1,100 women under federal jurisdiction, and just under half are in the community. There are almost 23,000 men in prison. So a very small number of women eventually make their way into prison. By the time they get here, they're suffering very seriously from substance abuse and mental health difficulties and financial marginalization trauma. Their journey back to balance, recovery, and safety has to be founded on creating safety in the environment they live in, and that relationships of trust and respect. That then becomes the platform for them to be able to accept accountability for the harm they have caused and to repair that harm. This restorative justice is integral in terms of how we operate at the facility.
I'd like to see if you have other questions, or I can tell you more about what we do here.