SPRING 2026 NEWSLETTER

Jun 11
8 min read

Message from our Executive Director

Jenny Espinoza, MD

For too long, our society has invested far more in reacting to harm than preventing it. We continue to spend billions on downstream systems like jails and prisons while underinvesting in children, families, and communities that need support long before crisis occurs. At Back to the Start, we believe people who have lived through these unbalanced systems understand these failures better than anyone. Through storytelling, policy advocacy, and cross-sector collaboration, we work to elevate those voices and push for upstream solutions that break cycles of trauma and incarceration before they begin.

This spring marks an important moment for Back to the Start as we continue expanding our impact in meaningful ways. We invite you to reflect with us on how far our work has grown and how much further it can reach when we all work together. What began inside San Quentin is now officially expanding into a new correctional facility. At the same time, our Reflections Behind Bars film continues to spark dialogue in new communities and on larger platforms — including under the bright lights at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin — helping audiences and policymakers better understand how cycles of trauma, poverty, and incarceration take root. And just as importantly, understanding how they can be prevented.

This expansion is also visible in our policy and coalition-building work, where we continue advocating for upstream investments that strengthen children, families, and communities. We helped secure significant policy victories in 2025, and we are excited to announce our 2026 legislative priorities in this newsletter.

Through storytelling, partnership, and action, we are continuing to turn lived experience into real solutions. Thank you for growing with us and for helping ensure these voices continue to be heard where they matter most.

Support Our Work

Expanding Our Stories

Back to the Start to Launch at a New Facility

Back to the Start is officially expanding to a second site — the California Medical Facility (CMF) in Vacaville. And we are thrilled that one of our co-founders, Brian Asey Gonsoulin, will help lead this effort as our inaugural Director of Prison Program Expansion.

This marks a major milestone for our organization. What began at San Quentin has proven that storytelling can be a powerful tool for healing and systems change. Now, we are taking that model to additional facilities across California so more incarcerated individuals have the opportunity to share their stories, reshape harmful narratives, and contribute to solutions that break cycles of trauma and incarceration. Ultimately, we plan to expand our work nationally.

Inclusivity is top of mind as we expand to this site, which houses a large portion of California’s medically vulnerable incarcerated individuals. We are committed to ensuring that our program remains accessible regardless of literacy level, disability status, or complex health needs.

As the program launches, we look forward to introducing CMF’s program facilitators and participants, as well as sharing new curriculum enhancements we’ll be piloting at this site.

Stay tuned for more updates!

Expanding Our Policy Impact

2026 Legislative Priorities

In 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed three of Back to the Start’s priority bills into law, translating lived experience into meaningful policy action. These hard-fought reforms included stopping endless juvenile probation (AB 1376), protecting safe access to schools for children and families (SB 48/AB 49), and school expulsion reforms (AB 1230).

While we are proud of those gains, we know this work is far from over.

In 2026, we are expanding our policy reach with a new slate of legislative priorities focused on:

Health and Education
Investments in Families and Communities
Youth Justice

These priorities reflect our continued belief that real public safety begins long before someone enters the criminal legal system. Each year, our team and interns conduct an extensive review of California legislation that intersects with the cradle-to-prison pipeline. From there, our incarcerated co-leads review the bills and identify the policy priorities where they believe their lived experience can have the greatest impact. By advocating for prevention, opportunity, and family stability, we work to help break cycles of trauma and incarceration before they begin.

In the months ahead, Back to the Start will continue deepening our policy work as legislative advocacy moves forward around key upstream investments for children and families. We’re also helping build stronger cross-sector collaboration through coalition mapping and building efforts focused on disrupting the cradle-to-prison pipeline and identifying where organizations can better align their efforts.

When impacted people lead, policy can truly begin to reflect justice.We urge you to contact your representatives and continue supporting these efforts.

Stay tuned for future updates on our priority bills, and how you can help support this work.

For more information including links to support letters and FAQ sheets, click here.

AB 2247 (ELHWARY): T.H.R.I.V.E ACT FOR YOUTH SURVIVORS OF GUN VIOLENCE

Provides funding for youth survivors and witnesses of gun violence to receive free, timely mental health and counseling services regardless. of immigration status or involvement with the justice system.

AB 1851 (GIPSON): STUDENT SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL HEALTH RESTORATIVE PRACTICES

Establishes a statewide, integrated framework for social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices in California schools.

AB 1969 (BONTA): IT TAKES A VILLAGE ACT OF 2026

Provides grant funding to neighborhood and regional partnership entities to implement place-based solutions to reduce child poverty and advance economic mobility for children and families disproportionately affected by intergenerational poverty.

SB 1009 (BECKER): LIMITING UNNECESSARY YOUTH DETENTION

Limits unnecessary detention in juvenile hall by prioritizing placing minors who are awaiting a court hearing at home or in less restrictive alternatives, except when it is necessary that the minor be detained in juvenile hall for their own or another's protection.

AB 1659 (RANSOM): SUPPORTING YOUTH TRANSITIONING FROM CUSTODY TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS

Strengthens support for juveniles transitioning out of custody and into local school districts by employing a school district transition liaison to ensure timely school placement and transfer of credits completed while in custody.

Reflections Behind Bars Goes National

SXSW Film Screening and Panel Recap

On March 11, 2026, Back to the Start was honored to bring Reflections Behind Bars to a national audience at SXSW EDU as part of its Short Documentary Film Program. The screening marked a major milestone for our organization, reflecting the growing reach of our growing library of childhood narratives written inside San Quentin.

Reflections Behind Bars follows incarcerated men as they share deeply personal stories of childhood trauma before an audience of peers, community members, and lawmakers. By confronting the experiences that shaped their lives, participants challenge harmful narratives about incarceration while helping audiences better understand the importance of prevention, healing, and upstream investment.

Following the screening, Back to the Start joined a panel discussion alongside the filmmakers behind The Boys of Summer, a documentary exploring emotional growth and vulnerability among young boys at a summer camp in rural Vermont. Though the films examined very different settings, both highlighted a common theme: the importance of addressing trauma early and creating healthier pathways for young people before harm becomes entrenched.

Audience engagement was thoughtful and deeply affirming, reinforcing what we have long believed — these stories resonate far beyond prison walls. As our film continues reaching new audiences, we remain committed to using storytelling as a tool for education, dialogue, and systemic change.

Shoutout to the SXSW Impact Lounge, we were able to meet like-minded individuals driving change work and other producers. We even got to squeeze in time to eat some BBQ, check out other films, attend a podcast with Governor Gavin Newsom, and enjoy great music!

Upcoming Screenings and Public Events

Join the Conversation

As Back to the Start expands its impact, we are continuing to bring conversations about prevention, healing, and systemic change into new communities. This spring, we invite you to join us as we partner with educational institutions, community organizations, and national platforms to expand the reach of our work and invite new audiences into these critical conversations. We look forward to seeing many of you at these events as we continue building community, shifting narratives, and expanding opportunities for change.

Reflections Behind Bars also continues to build momentum as a tool for education, connection, and action. We’re planning additional screenings and community conversations and welcome organizations interested in hosting or sponsoring future events. Please contact us if you are interested in hosting a film screening or community event, and be sure to watch the trailer for Reflections Behind Bars.

College of Marin Rising Scholars Film Screening & Panel

Wednesday, May 6 | 12:30pm-2:00pm

Location: Center for Student Success, Room 200

Back to the Start will partner with College of Marin Rising Scholars for a screening of Reflections Behind Bars followed by a panel discussion on barriers to education, reentry, and breaking cycles of incarceration.

Hear the powerful childhood stories from incarcerated individuals inside San Quentin. And together, we can break the cycle.

While this event is focused on student attendees, it is the kickoff to a larger event for the general public planned for this fall.

Click here for more information and to RSVP

Yale Justice Collaboratory Webinar

Tuesday, May 19 | 9:00am - 1:00pm ET

Back to the Start co-founder Dr. Jenny Espinoza will join Yale Justice Collaboratory for a national webinar on Using Narrative to Move Policy. The conversation will explore how storytelling, research, and lived experience can work together to drive meaningful systems change. Panelists will share lived experiences, research insights, and on-the-ground strategies that illuminate how solidarities take root in addressing some of the nation’s most imminent threats to safety and justice today.

This national webinar is open to the public. To register, click here.

Back to the Start & Bay Peace Film Screening

Back to the Start and BayPeace will host a special double feature screening of Reflections Behind Bars and Free Our Kids.

Join us for an evening of storytelling and dialogue exploring the intersections of intergenerational trauma, poverty, and incarceration. Hear directly from individuals whose lived experiences challenge dominant narratives and deepen our understanding of how cycles of harm take root and how they can be transformed.

Date/Time:

Tuesday June 9, 2026

6:00pm - 8:00pm

Location:

The New Parkway Theatre

474 24th St, Oakland, CA

To RSVP, scan the QR code below or click here.

A Milestone of Hope and Redemption

Governor Newsom Commutes Jessie Milo’s Sentence

This spring, we received life-changing news: Governor Gavin Newsom commuted the sentence of Jessie Milo, one of our program co-leads and an integral leader within our organization.

For years, Jessie has poured his heart into building community, sharing truth, and creating pathways for others to heal and grow. His voice has shaped our work in profound ways through legislative advocacy, public storytelling efforts, and our broader mission of helping communities better understand how trauma, poverty, and systemic failure often shape pathways into incarceration. This news is a step toward the freedom and recognition he has long deserved.

Jessie’s story reflects something we see every day in this work — people are far more than the worst decisions they have made. Transformation, accountability, and redemption are real, even when systems are slow to recognize them. His story also highlights the extreme sentencing disparities that continue to impact many incarcerated people. For decades, Jessie lived with virtually no hope under a sentence of 174 years plus six life-sentences for attempted murder committed when he was a young man.

This moment belongs first and foremost to Jessie and his loved ones, but it also serves as a powerful reminder of why this work matters. We are honored to celebrate this milestone and look forward to what comes next in his journey.

Back to the Start Intern Spotlight

Meet Our Spring Intern: Esther Melton

This spring, Back to the Start welcomed Esther Melton as an intern supporting our narrative and policy work focused on disrupting the cradle-to-prison pipeline. Esther is one of many students and interns we host each year through public health practicums, elective rotations, and our summer internship program. Each person brings their own unique story and perspective to this work, and we’re excited to share Esther’s story with you.

Read Esther’s interview here

by Juan Moreno Haines (program incarcerated co-lead)