Recently, on the Black Light Mass Incarceration Show, Emancipate NC’s Cierra Cobb interviewed April Barber.
In 2022, April earned one of the first commutations from Governor Roy Cooper from the Juvenile Sentencing Review Board.
April went into prison pregnant at the age of 15, and she served for 31 and a half years. She shares her experiences being locked up, the shameful limits on menstruation products in prison, the dire need for better re-entry preparation and supports, and her relationship with her son, who was raised by a friend.
She is now working as a healthcare aid and she is a powerful advocate for people left behind in prison.
April states: “We try to band together and go back for those left behind!”