The Story Behind the Act & Bill That Transformed the Life of Incarcerated Women in Georgia

by Peter Jason Content Enthusiast

Pamela Winn, THE FOUNDER OF RESTOREHER AND A #CUT50 DIGNITY AMBASSADOR, Shares Her Struggles Behind PASSING THE FIRST STEP ACT AS WELL AS A DIGNITY BILL IN GEORGIA.

Going through the worst times in her life as a prisoner for 78-months in federal prison after committing a ‘white-collar crime,’ Pamela Winn went on the mission of improving the lives of incarcerated, pregnant women. Winn elucidates that she made a mistake and had no issue facing the punishment for her mistake, yet what followed was something she had never imagined in her wildest dreams. Pregnant with her third child, this surgical nurse was incarcerated and became a victim of the brutal attitude by the jail authorities, leading to her life-threatening abortion and medical mistreatments.

“I was sentenced for 78 months as the punishment for my mistake, not for the torture and to get my baby murdered due to medical negligence, this was something I had never thought of, yet women in all the jails across the nation are vulnerable to such circumstances, and so I was resolute to change it,” says Winn.

After completing her sentence, she was devastated to the core by listening to demotivating comments of people who surround her that nothing could be done. However, this ‘nothing could be done’ was precisely the thing that triggered Pamela Winn, who then became stubborn not to let any mother ever get in such a heinous situation. “I was determined to end this circumstance and took the negative comments as a motivation to bring forth change,” says Winn.

Winn reached out to organizations that were already involved in creating the legislation for shackling of pregnant women in her home state of Georgia and become vocal about her issue in an attempt to bolster those organizations as they were looking for solid evidence to support their endeavors.

All she needed was the beginning, and with this, she embarked on an endless journey, creating an influence that resonated across the nation. The first time Winn spoke was publicly on the panel with the Drug Policy Alliance.

Consequently, Winn’s incapability to stay quiet led her to start a petition with Change.org that received a 100K signatures in less than a month demanding the Dignity for Incarcerated Women’s Act bringing awareness of Senator Cory Booker and #Cut50. Winn spearheaded the Dignity for Incarcerated Women’s campaign and worked to create original legislation with an intention to end shackling in Georgia under the Dignity Bill.

It is said that if you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it, and with the first stride taken by Winn, the pathway to her ambition was all paved. It was when Winn was indulged in strategizing for the upcoming 2019 session that Jessica Jackson, the National Director and Co-Founder of the #cut50, approached her about the inclusion of the Georgia Dignity Legislation in the First Step Act.

Sitting in the gallery, making it to the last House vote for the First Step Act, Winn realized she has finally made it happen when she heard Representative Karen Bass telling her story on the House floor. The First Step Act was passed officially that day December 20, 2018, yet Winn was not to take a sigh of relief. Even though she was happy about the federal bill, Winn wanted to make sure that no other women in her home state would ever suffer such atrociousness.

From there, Pamela Winn embarked on yet another journey of achieving her desire. She visited Capitol every day, back and forth, meeting representatives and securing Republican support, primarily through state Rep. Sharon Cooper, the chairwoman of the Health & Human Services Committee, who hosted the bill. Winn facilitated the unanimous passage of HB345, bringing an end to the shackling and solitary confinement of the pregnant and postpartum women incarcerated in Georgia.

As the founder of the RestoreHER, a policy advocacy organization, Winn remains to be the notable person who spearheaded the Dignity campaign in Georgia.

However, the incredible activist has no intention to halt her endeavors and is currently working on deferring the sentence for pregnant women. Through this effort, Winn hopes that when the pregnant women are arrested, they will be automatically bonded out and would not come back to serve that time until 12 weeks after they’ve delivered their baby, creating a win-win situation for everyone. This diminishes the prisons’ liability to care for incarcerated pregnant women while giving woman independence and autonomy over her body and baby.