Two weeks ago I got a call from Patrick (name changed to protect his privacy), a young man I interviewed almost 3 years ago for my book. He’s been in a Mississippi prison for 4 years on a nonviolent drug charge.

In spite of having no behavior problems since his incarceration, he was denied parole last year. He’s one of 4,405 people in Mississippi prisons serving time for a nonviolent drug charge today. One year ago that number was 3,105.

That’s a 41% increase in just 1 year. That’s staggering.

While it’s not clear yet what’s driving such a significant increase, we hope more people will urge leaders to pursue health-centered approaches to drugs rather than criminal justice ones.

Are you looking for an opportunity to do just that? If you’re between 18-35 years old, check out the Young Voices info in the “Opportunities” section below.

My call with Patrick was short, but he gave me a quick update on his life behind bars and his fears for his physical safety after watching several men get beaten up in the last few weeks.

Incarceration is necessary sometimes, but as one police chief told me, it has a very narrow scope of usefulness. When it’s used outside that scope, it compounds problems instead of solving them. The crucial question before us is whether drugs and addiction fall into that scope of usefulness, or whether incarceration compounds harm instead.

I think you know where we stand, but there’s a seat at the table for you no matter your perspective.