"Incarceration Nation" is a 2021 documentary film written and directed by Dean Gibson. It examines the Australian justice system's treatment of Indigenous people, exploring the historical and contemporary factors contributing to their high incarceration rates. The film features interviews with various individuals, including activists and legal experts, providing insights into the systemic issues faced by Indigenous communities. Through personal stories and archival footage, the documentary aims to raise awareness and promote discussions about the need for justice system reforms.

Interviewees

Individuals interviewed in Incarceration Nation.^[1][2]

• Prof. Derek Chong – psychiatrist
• Joshua Creamer – barrister
• Apryl Day – daughter of Tanya Day
• Leetona Dungay – mother of David Dungay Jr.
• Mick Gooda – public servant, Human Rights Commissioner (2009–2016)
• Olga Havnen – CEO of Danila Dilba Health Service
• Debbie Kilroy – prison reform activist and lawyer
• Tony McAvoy – barrister
• Amy McQuire – author and journalist
• Keenan Mundine – co-founder of Deadly Connections
• Mathew Myers – ALRC Indigenous Incarceration Inquiry commissioner
• Teela Reid – lawyer
• Vickie Roach – prison abolitionist
• Jodie Sizer – Co-CEO of PWC's Indigenous Consulting (2016–2021)
• Carly Stanley – CEO and co-founder of Deadly Connections
• Jim Taylor – former WA police officer
• Assoc. Prof. Chelsea Watego – author and academic
• Prof. Don Weatherburn – National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre professor

Reception

Writing in the Sydney Morning, Herald Craig Mathieson gave it 4 stars and states "It’s about a country that disproportionately punishes its original inhabitants, and it is in turn unnerving, shocking, and tragic; Gibson does not blink. It captures how the system can fail the individual, and with a test program in the NSW town of Bourke how some basic improvements might actually be made."^[3]

Also in the Sydney Morning, Herald Bridget McManus gave it 4 stars. She says "the film expands with evidence that has been hiding in plain sight. With the blessing of courageous families, incredibly distressing vision of abuse and neglect at the hands of police and prison officers is relayed. Indigenous lawyers, barristers and advocates – many of them relatively new faces on television – dissect the issue, tracing it back to colonisation with appalling historical footnotes, and offer solutions."^[4]

Eddie Cockrell of the Weekend Australian wrote "Incarceration Nation is distressing and exhausting, and that may well be the point".^[5]

Awards

References

External links

• Incarceration Nation at IMDb