Pariah: Exploring the aftermath of mass incarceration and injustice
We all share a common core, which is that we live in an incarcerated society. Our parents have suffered under the same oppressors and even after 500+ years of colonization and exploitation, the load of such abuse has crippled us socially.
Pariah seeks to explore the aftermath of mass incarceration and injustice; and most importantly, to chronicle the trauma and scars perpetuating within ex-prisoners. How they suffered the lashes of a system that believes eternal punishment and death can discipline and dominate people, just like slavery.
This series exists to express the pain and difficulty most face when trying to integrate back into a society that rejects ex-prisoners after having been essentially vomited by a system created to welcome them back into a loop self destruction.
![I: How is your relationship with society now that you are labeled? Does it affect you? H: Anything you do, you feel restrained due to your record. They take our past and our present. I: Have you kept in touch with your friends and family? H: My family supported me. They took care of me so I don’t get depressed and that I try to lift myself up again. It all depends on your family and friends. A lot of guys don’t have that [support] and when they come out they prefer to be in prison.](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/31ef3d_b31b584b75dc487ea05748e2c6f3eaae~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_522,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/31ef3d_b31b584b75dc487ea05748e2c6f3eaae~mv2.jpg)
"Anything you do, you feel restrained due to your record. They take our past and our present."
Zarita Zevallos is a Haitian Photographer based in New York.
Models : Remington Alexander and Erwing Alouidor