Page 12 - Human Rights Program 2025 Annual Report

11
EXPLORING ALTERNATIVES TO
INCARCERATION AND PROMOTING THE
RIGHTS OF CHILDREN
HRP-CIC Hub project team 2024-2025
One in six children in Minnesota has experienced a parent's incarceration. Despite international
law demanding that legal systems consider the best interests of children, their voices often go
unheard when courts hand down sentencing decisions. This academic year, the Human Rights
Program and partner organization Children of Incarcerated Caregivers (CIC) were awarded a
Liberal Arts Engagement Hub residency and grant to explore how legal systems can protect
children’s human rights by centering their interests in the criminal legal process.
HRP and CIC assembled a diverse community of passionate individuals to spearhead a year-
long collaborative project - students, subject matter experts, NGO leaders, formerly incarcerated
individuals, people impacted by incarceration, former elected officials, and people who work in
the criminal legal system. This partnership generated promising alternatives to parental
incarceration and strategies to protect children’s rights.
Thank you to the Liberal Arts Engagement Hub in the College of Liberal Arts for their
generous support of this project. We are also grateful to our partners at Children of
Incarcerated Caregivers for their dedication and collaboration.