Right of Return USA and the Art & Advocacy Society

The Right of Return USA fellowship program was established in 2016 by formerly incarcerated artists Jesse Krimes and Russell Craig in partnership with The Soze Agency. Right of Return supports formerly incarcerated artists working in any medium in creating work that advances criminal justice reform, racial justice and narrative change. It is the only fellowship focused solely on fostering the talents and strengthening the advocacy impact of directly impacted artists. Each fellow comes to the program with a specific justice issue or policy they want to address, challenge or reimagine. Their shared intention is to shift the narrative around the criminal legal system through art.

While people who have not been to jail or prison can also be deeply impacted by the criminal legal system, the co-founders recognize that formerly incarcerated artists have been deprived of a larger artistic community by the coercive force of the state. The fellowship fosters connections between and among fellows, established art professionals, criminal justice reform leaders and organizations. By enabling participants to build their capacity as creators and advocates, the Fellowship actively contributes to ending mass incarceration.

Jesse Krimes is currently working to expand the Right of Return USA fellowship from a single initiative into the holistic Art and Advocacy Society, a three-pronged effort to build a national movement of formerly incarcerated artists and advocates working together to end mass incarceration and advance racial equity. The Art and Advocacy Society will encompass the Right of Return USA fellowship; a residency; and an alternative school model and curricula that is currently being piloted at MoMA PS1, with the goal of replicating it at art institutions across the country.  With 2.5 full-time staff at the outset, Right of Return and the larger Art & Advocacy Society are poised for significant growth within 12-18 months.