The Workhouse: The Court’s ATM | Ben & Jerry's

More than half a million Americans are sitting in jail awaiting trial. And 60% of them are there because they can’t afford not to be. (Source: https://www.usccr.gov/news/2022/us-co...)

That’s why the Workhouse jail in St. Louis stayed so full for so long. Some people jailed there were pulled over for speeding, others learned they had outstanding warrants for probation violations. All of them owed something to the courts.

In the second episode of this podcast series, we’re taking the courts to court, to understand how the system kept The Workhouse jail full for over a century, and how Inez and the community of activists around her emptied it for good.

About Into the Mix

Into the Mix is a podcast all about joy and justice in action, and this season, Ben & Jerry’s is bringing you four multi-part stories that take you beyond the news headlines, and introduce you to the real people at the heart of some of today’s greatest fights for justice. Host Ashley C. Ford is taking you to meet activists who fought to shut down a notorious jail in St. Louis, a community rising up against the destruction of their health and home in a part of Louisiana dubbed Cancer Alley, and leaders protecting voting rights and inclusion efforts in the south. Let’s get into it!

And don’t miss our previous seasons for more stories of struggle and success from communities across the world, plus conversations about art and activism, with friends of Ben & Jerry’s like John Legend, Big Freedia, and Ava DuVernay.