Why Is MOSES Having a Gala?
Why Is MOSES Having a Gala?
By Mary Anglim and Joan Duerst
The word gala, a festive celebration – is derived from the French word galer, which means “to have a good time, to rejoice.”
The mission of MOSES is to build collective power to dismantle the systems of mass incarceration and mass supervision and to eradicate the racial disparities in our community that contribute to them.
Why is MOSES rejoicing?
Imagine that you did something that harmed the community or someone in it, and that you were convicted of a crime and sentenced to years in prison. How would you feel? Might you try to change your ways? You might study, write letters, pray, or see how your life could be different. Not only do you not want to cause harm and sadness, but you also want to be renewed, to be helpful to friends and family.
Finally the day comes, and you are released. With the help of others, you find ways to get your life in order. You see that there are things you can do to restore your family. You even begin to reach out to other families. With your new insights, you want to find ways to make the community safe. You dream of a place where everyone will get along — a place where everyone who needs a job has one, where everyone is safe, where everyone has enough to eat and a place to live and can enjoy life! Now how do you feel?
Shall we rejoice with you? Shall we have a celebration? You are making such a great difference in a difficult time that we want to tell the whole world. We want to have a GALA!
Since 2017, MOSES has brought people together to honor and celebrate those who were incarcerated and who now are making the world a better place. One of those people had an idea: Wouldn’t it be great if there could be an occasion when we could get dressed up and meet other people who have worked to make the prison system one of compassion, one that helps people overcome the traumas of their lives, rather than a place of lifelong punishment?
Let’s all go! Let’s do MOSES! Let’s rejoice that we have helped build power to create systems that enable people to be the best they can be! Let’s celebrate that we are dismantling disparities, so that we have communities of justice, peace, and caring!
We will greet each other. We will eat great appetizers and sweets prepared by the young people trained by the Goodman Center. There might be a raffle! We will especially welcome the new awardees who have overcome the pain of incarceration and become stars in the community.
Sponsors and participants contribute to the ongoing work of MOSES. Those who can will add to the cost of their tickets, so that some folks fresh out of the carceral system can celebrate with us and dream of how they will make the world a better place.
MOSES will hold its seventh annual Gala on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, 5:30-8:30 p.m., at the Brassworks of The Goodman Center, 214 Waubesa St. Tickets are $75/person, or $65/person for two or more registering together. Save the date! Further information will be available in October.
