Common Era: Does Punishment Even Work? (S2 Episode 05)

In this episode, Matshidiso and Annmarie put the very concept of crime and punishment under scrutiny. If the prison system we’ve created is ultimately a failure, what kind of approach could take its place? The conversation moves from the need for acknowledgment of wrong, and consequences of that wrong, to establishing a humane, case-by-case understanding of criminality that views offenders truly as human beings made in the image of God. In particular, Annmarie brings her 25 years of experience in the youth justice space to deeply challenge our presumptions about crime and a whole section of society that we find convenient to forget about.

More about our guests:

Annmarie Lewis OBE is a leading business and justice consultant – sought after in the fields of Justice Systems, Strategy, Business/Organisational Development and Design and Executive Leadership. Having previously founded her own award winning social enterprise, and consultancy business, she is also an accomplished academic, trainer and executive coach. Her passion and specialisms are within the youth justice sector, where she has worked across the entire spectrum of end to end justice, spanning 25 years.

A classically trained pianist, Matshidiso is also a composer, arranger and singer-songwriter. With a background in human rights law, her passion is to use music and creativity to promote human rights and justice-based projects. Matshidiso also has a podcast Holding Up the Ladder where she interviews people about their creative processes — https://holdingtheladder.com

See the full Season 2 playlist on YouTube, or listen to the audio-only podcast here.