Who Is Marcus Kelley ?
Born in Youngstown, Ohio, and raised in Pontiac, Michigan, Marcus is the Founder of Change Up, an organization led by the formerly incarcerated to end the big business and dehumanize policies of the prison industry. A victim of wrongful conviction Marcus spent nearly 9 years in prison. While incarcerated, he used his voice to fight for the civil rights of prisoners and successfully organized a hunger strike which led to the cancellation of Aramark’s contract due to them serving food spoiled with maggots to inmates. He also successfully fought for education and job training and filed a successful prisoner civil rights complaint against the MDOC. This passion for standing up for what is right has remained strong since his release and he remains rooted in his vision to build systems that are based on true justice, shared humanity, and compassion.
Strong Strategic Planner and Organizer
While incarcerated, he:
Successfully organized and led a prison hunger strike which included the Aryan Brotherhood, Nation of Islam, Christians, and Gang affiliates in protest against a plethora of human rights violations in the Michigan Department of Corrections that led to Aramark’s contract being terminated for serving spoiled food with maggots.
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He fought and was successful in education and job training, and later filed a successful Prisoner Civil Rights Complaint against the MDOC. https://casetext.com/case/kelley-v-hissong
Mental Health Issues
After spending multiple stretches in solitary confinement as a result of standing for human rights, he was diagnosed with PTSD and once freed after 9 long years, he had a hard time adjusting to society.
He learned that he suffered from Post Incarceration Syndrome as a result of his prison experience. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2021/05/13/mentalhealthimpacts/
“I wasn’t the same person I was prior to entering prison” -Marcus Kelley
As a returning citizen, he experienced the systems of legal discrimination as a result of having the words “criminal record” attached to his name, which was created solely for the disenfranchisement of black people-a system that was designed with the use of the exception clause to the 13th amendment and state constitutions. These issues of discrimination that Michigan’s Ban The Box https://www.govdocs.com/michigan-passes-new-ban-the-box-law/ was created but failed to address consisted of:
Problems with obtaining housing
Banned from paid government positions
Underpaid employment
Predatory lending
Higher insurance rates
As an expert on these issues by way of experience as well as data he’d collected from active members justice impacted community members, Marcus believes that meaningful and successful tools to full restoration and enfranchisement are:
Mental health education with a particular focus on Post Incarceration Syndrome and civic education
He also believes that full restoration and enfranchisement of prisoners and returning citizens begins with:
Ending Slavery and Involuntary Servitude
Prisoners' right to vote
Social Security points for prison workers
OLSHA protections for prison workers
And ending permanent punishment by doing away with criminal records once someone has served their time
