Muscogee Creek Nation Reintegration Program

The state of Oklahoma imprisons more men and women, on a per capita basis, than almost any state in the United States. As in other states, American Indians make up a disproportionately large part of the prison population. But when these prisoners are released, they face an uphill battle to return to their communities as productive citizens. Released prisoners receive a bus ticket, a check for $50, and a set of second-hand clothes. This presented a major challenge to the Muscogee Creek Nation. Dozens of Creek citizens were being released into Creek communities every year, with no reliable means of help or support; many eventually were being returned to prison as they struggled to find their way. But in Creek tradition, justice is restorative: when a perpetrator pays the penalty for his or her actions, they are welcomed again into the community. Furthermore, the Creeks understand that every citizen is important. The nation simply cannot afford to lose its people to a revolving door of prison terms.  In the early 2000s, the Muscogee Creek Nation set out to address this problem. They faced some opposition within the Nation; some wondered why the Nation was serving ex-prisoners when it had so many other needs among law-abiding citizens. But the Nation persevered, believing that its communities would be safer if it helped to turn former prisoners into productive citizens. In 2004, the nation passed legislation establishing the Reintegration Program. Today that program works with prisoners both prior to release and during the reintegration process, paying attention to everything from jobs and housing to the spiritual needs of men and women who have been cut off from community and tradition. As a result of the work of this program, recidivism is down among released Muscogee prisoners, while the Nation has established itself as the state’s leader in such programs, as a paradigm-changing practitioner of new approaches to reintegration, and as a model for Native and non-Native communities alike.