New Chapters: NFL Awards Grant To Nonprofit Helping Formerly Incarcerated

WASHINGTON, DC — The National Football League awarded a new grant to Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop in Washington, D.C., a group that works with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated youth and adults, as part of the league’s Inspire Change social justice initiative.

Free Minds uses the literary arts, workforce development and trauma healing to connect D.C. residents who received long prison sentences when they were young with their communities upon return to the city after incarceration.

The Inspire Change grant from the NFL will be used to support a 12-week in-house peer support training program teaching trauma-informed care, social emotional wellness and crisis response. The NFL does not release the amount of money organizations are awarded as part of its grant program.

Since 2018, the NFL has provided more than $180 million in support of programs focused on education, economic advancement, police and community relations, and criminal justice reform.

"For the NFL to reach out and help us with what we’re doing, that’s one in a million," Craig Watson, a peer support specialist at Free Minds who helped develop the 12-week peer support training program, said in an interview with Patch. "It's like a dream come true. They saw what we’re doing and what we could do and offered financial backing."

Before joining Free Minds as a staff member, Watson spent 22 years in prison. A D.C. native, Watson was only 17 years old when he was convicted in 1997 as an adult and sentenced to 35 years to life. He was released from prison in 2019 through a D.C. law offering young people with extreme sentences an opportunity for re-sentencing.

Watson, in his early 40s now, became involved with Free Minds in 2014 while in prison. Through Free Minds, Watson used the group's monthly "Write Nights" to help him learn how to write and find new ways to express himself through poetry.

At Free Minds, each formerly incarcerated person — who is a “member” of the program — is paired with a reentry coach, whose duties include helping members find jobs. The members also are paired with peers like Watson, who have already navigated the challenges of the transition from prisons back into the community.

“We’re really excited that the NFL recognizes how crucial that is and how difficult reentry is as part of their racial justice work,” said Tara Libert, co-founder and executive director of Free Minds.

Formerly incarcerated people are often more willing to confide in a person who also spent time in prison. They feel safer to admit their struggles with issues such as technology or relationships with one of their peers, Libert told Patch.

Watson explained that trained peer supporters at Free Minds can instill trust in members. Many members might be reluctant to open up to family members or friends. "It’s different to have somebody who walked that walk before you did," he said.

Once formerly incarcerated people finish the 12-week peer support training — paid for by the NFL’s Inspire Change grant — they get matched with a member coming home.

Libert said Free Minds has about 300 members in its re-entry program. "So we’re hoping we can pair them with peer supporters who have gone through the 12-week training," she said.

Free Minds and three other groups were notified about the grants in December by the NFL’s Social Justice Working Group, which includes a group of team owners, along with players Demario Davis of the New Orleans Saints, Kelvin Beachum of the Arizona Cardinals, Josh Norman of the San Francisco 49ers, former NFL player Anquan Boldin and former player Aeneas Williams.

The other groups awarded Inspire Change grants were Year Up, Wall Street Bound and Get Schooled.

Anna Isaacson, senior vice president of social responsibility at the NFL, expressed excitement about the NFL's decision to partner with Free Minds.

“The work they are doing fully aligns with our efforts to break down barriers to opportunity and equality, through our Inspire Change social justice initiative,” Isaacson said in a statement.

“Their use of literacy and peer support training programs for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated youth and adults help equip individuals with the tools and resources needed to build a brighter future,” she added.

Watson was a big fan of the Washington Redskins when he went to prison in 1997 and remains a diehard fan of the Washington Football Team today. He hopes NFL players will visit Free Minds to see how the league's investment is being put to good use.

"I want to let the NFL know we appreciate the grant, and hopefully we'll have an opportunity to continue to partner with them and meet some of the players," he said

Free Minds is hosting its monthly virtual "On the Same Page: Write Night" on Jan. 26 where community volunteers work with Free Minds Poet Ambassadors who have returned home from prison to provide feedback on the poetry of Free Minds Book Club members still incarcerated.

Also, every Monday evening from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., community volunteers are invited to gather — via Zoom during the pandemic — to write letters to members who are in federal prison, often far away from their families and friends in D.C. Volunteers are asked to schedule an orientation on the letter-writing program and make at least a 10-hour commitment to the program.

For Watson, when he was incarcerated, Free Minds offered a wealth of support, from its "Write Nights" to sending him books. Upon returning home in 2019, Watson immediately connected with Free Minds, which helped him with his reentry into the community.

Almost three years later, Watson is now a full-time staff member of Free Minds and was recently promoted to peer support specialist.