THE SPATIAL JUSTICE PROJECT
Spatial Justice Project (SJP) Public Exhibits set a traditional Jewish Sukkah next to a Confinement Sukkah, a reproduction of a solitary confinement cell. The juxtaposition of the two structures, coupled with interactive programming, serve as a springboard for constructive dialogue about what we chose to build and how we design spaces often determines experience and imposes status and identity.
The Public Exhibits are safe, open, interactive forums where ideas of Spatial Justice can be demonstrated, experienced, and discussed.
VIDEO EXCERPTS FROM TOWARD A NEW SOCIAL ARCHITECTURE
HOSTED BY 92Y (2021)
Why Sukkot and Spatial Justice?
Sukkot is Hebrew for “small hut” or “shelter.” Each year during the eight-day holiday of Sukkot Jewish people eat and spend time in temporary, outdoor, three-sided wood structures with roofs that allow views of the sky. These Sukkot commemorate the temporary shelters that Jews built after being freed from slavery in Egypt, while they wandered the desert for 40 years in search of a homeland. Sukkot protected the Jewish people, providing a safe, communal space to gather and eat, and Sukkot remain physical symbols and reminders of security and community, and of freedom from oppression. Each Sukkah is festooned with greenery and produce to symbolize the bounty and sustenance nature and God provide.
SJP public exhibits set a traditional Sukkah next to a Confinement Sukkah -- a reproduction of a typical solitary confinement cell. In contrast to the traditional Sukkah, the Confinement Sukkah is smaller, bleak, and fully enclosed. In place of greenery and fresh fruits and vegetables, the Confinement Sukkah is draped in barbed wire. While the traditional Sukkah features an open wall that invites people in to partake in nourishment, the Confinement Sukkah has a metal door that temporarily seals visitors within a bare and stark interior. The juxtaposition of the two Sukkot highlights the dichotomy between the freedom and community of a people released from bondage in search of a new home, and the intentional isolation, deprivation and cruelty of incarceration that imposes trauma, hopelessness, and stigma.
This juxtaposition dramatizes how spaces project meaning, and how we use space to promote community and freedoms, as well as to assert dominance and power. While SJP Public Exhibits set a physical Jewish Sukkot beside a Confinement Sukkot, Public Exhibits are designed to engage all faiths and communities, all stakeholders in criminal and social justice – all of us – in a safe, inclusive forum to foster cross-community and cross-cultural conversation, understanding and empathy.
An Interactive Experience
Spatial Justice Exhibits include facilitators at both Sukkot – from the faith community and people who have experienced incarceration – to educate visitors, share experiences, lead engagements, and nurture constructive dialogue.
Exhibits also feature a schedule of on-site interactive programming by partner organization that include educational presentations, calls to action, performances and testimonials, and inclusive activities.
Prism Reform can assist host sites with design and construction, programming, materials, and other support, however the SJP is intentionally designed for hosts to tailor Public Exhibits to their mission and community.
A Timeless & Timely Exhibit
Drawing as it does from a seminal event in the Old Testament and from one of the oldest traditions in the Judeo-Christian world, Spatial Justice Exhibits use established and evocative tropes that have deep historic resonance. At the same time, the Public Exhibits speak uniquely and directly to a contemporary watershed event.
For many of us, the Covid-19 pandemic provoked feelings of confinement and isolation, while the rampant spread of the virus in prisons and the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others dramatized institutional and systemic inequalities that have long plagued our nation. Now more than ever, it is critical that we collectively develop spaces, practices and language (written, spoken and visual) to address these structural inequities and create a more inclusive marketplace of ideas. The SJP Public Exhibits are designed to provide opportunities for such constructive and proactive dialogue.