Closest to the Problem, Closest to the Solution

I arrived at Riverside Park and immediately saw tables and tents set up by nonprofit organizations. Joyful music played over a loudspeaker, and I watched the community gather. Some people were laughing, some were tapping their feet to the music, and others were engaged in serious conversations. The smell of barbecue wafted through the air, and I spotted a puppy happy to receive my attention (and I was just as happy to give it).

This was a community event hosted by A Brighter Way. With the motto “Reentry through Relationship,” the organization brings this vision to life through kinship, support, and resources. A Brighter Way works with people who have been formerly incarcerated, helping them find employment, housing, and, most importantly, a community that cares. All of their staff members have direct, lived experience with incarceration and the difficulties that follow when community care and resources are often withheld after release. On their website, we learn that 33% of formerly incarcerated people have not been able to find a job four years after their release, and nationally, 68% are re-arrested within three years of their release.

By expanding relationships and upholding dignity, the community at A Brighter Way has a recidivism rate of only 3%. They are clearly doing a lot of things right.

But I didn’t need stats to tell me that. It was evident at the community event, where we shared a meal and built those relationships. Adam Grant, the Executive Director, said a number of things that will stay with me. He mentioned that often people say what’s needed are more resources, but the resources are already out there. They just need to get into the right hands. He then added, “Those who are closest to the problem are closest to the solution.”

Those who are closest to the problem are closest to the solution. This rings true at A Brighter Way.

This could be true in many other places as well. Who has the lived experience to drive meaningful change? Who has the leadership and expertise close to the issues at hand? Isn’t it often those who have been most directly affected?

— Renee Roederer