STATE COLLEGE — Central Pennsylvania United is inviting community members to take part in two events this week as the organization documents its campaign to bring outdoor recreation to the Centre County Correctional Facility for a short documentary.
The documentary, being produced with CPAU’s digital team, will follow CPAU’s criminal justice campaign and examine how community organizing works, from building support to overcoming challenges and maintaining momentum.
Chapter Director Jenna Henry said the film is expected to run about 15 to 20 minutes and will focus on the organization’s efforts to advocate for outdoor recreation at the county jail.
“It’s going to be a short documentary about the campaign, about the issue of outdoor recreation, what we’ve done so far, where we’re at now and the next steps in the process now that it’s just kind of sitting with the commissioners,” Henry said.
Filming will take place during two public events. A Criminal Justice Campaign meeting is scheduled for Thursday, July 16, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the CPAU office. A Letter to the Editor workshop will be held Saturday, July 18, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the home of Marie Hamilton in Houserville. Both events will be filmed for use in the documentary.
Henry said one goal is to educate residents who may not realize inmates at the Centre County Correctional Facility do not have access to outdoor recreation.
“There’s still so many people who just don’t know that there is no outdoor recreation,” she said. “People just assume it’s such a basic thing that it’s definitely happening.”
The letter-writing workshop is designed to help participants draft and submit letters to local newspapers while keeping attention focused on the campaign.
“Our hope is to continue showing that people still care about this, that it’s not just going to go away if the commissioners ignore it for a long time,” Henry said. “It’s also a way for us to document the campaign and show how we strategize and how you run an issue campaign.”
Henry acknowledged that prison officials have stated the Centre County Correctional Facility is legally compliant despite not offering outdoor recreation. But Henry believes legality and morality are separate issues.
“Legality and morality are not the same thing,” Henry said. “Just because something is legal does not mean it is right or ethical in any kind of way.”
Henry said she believes the county’s declining jail population presents an opportunity for officials to consider adding at least one outdoor recreation yard that inmates could use on a rotating basis.
“I think now is the perfect opportunity,” she said. “We just need to continue to show the commissioners that this is something the community cares about.”
The documentary is expected to be completed by the end of the year or early next year. Henry said CPAU plans to host a public screening and will announce additional details through its communication channels when the project is finished.
For more information on the two planned events, visit paunited.org/central-pa-united.
