Emma Logan.
Emma Logan, the founder of the Emma Logan Project, joined 45 other media and marketing executives for a night inside Yasmar Detention Centre as part of Adland Bail Out.
This initiative by social purpose organisation UnLtd aimed to raise funds and awareness to break the cycle of youth incarceration across Australia and New Zealand.
The initiative, held on Friday, June 20, raised more than $100,000.
Logan told AdNews that while what she expected was a cold broken sleep and a night of manageable discomfort, what she experienced was something far more confronting.
“A glimpse into the emotional toll of a system that strips you of identity, control, and connection," Logan said.
“Looking back, it wasn’t the physical discomfort that has stayed with me. The cold floor or the broken sleep.
“It ran much deeper. What truly challenged me was the emotional disconnection.
“Even in a space where I knew I was ultimately safe, I felt the weight of having no voice, no control and no connection to the people around me.
“It confronted me in a way I wasn’t expecting and challenged every human instinct I usually rely on.”
Later in the evening, the inmates took part in a series of workshops with people who had lived experience in the justice system
“That was when it truly sank in. This isn’t just an experience. For many, it is their reality,” Logan said.
“We heard personal stories from those who had walked this path, and one thing became painfully clear.
“These young people are often victims of their circumstances. Many grow up without a supportive family, or even a single adult who believes in them.
“The system doesn’t just fail them when they are locked up. It fails them long before that.”
Across most of Australia, children as young as ten can be incarcerated, according to UnLtd.
"Once a child enters the justice system, the path out is brutally steep. The statistics on reoffending and reincarceration are heartbreaking." Logan said.
The inmates also viewed the new #RaiseTheAge campaign, calling for the minimum age of criminal responsibility to be lifted from ten to fourteen.
“UnLtd is doing extraordinary work alongside grassroots organisations to create real change,” Logan said.
“They are advocating, preventing, and building genuine pathways of support for vulnerable children.
“A heartfelt thank you to the entire UnLtd team for making this experience possible, to the fellow inmates who shared the night with me and to the guards who kept us on the straight and narrow.
“For me, Adland Bail Out was real. It was thought-provoking, confronting and something I will carry with me for a long time to come.”
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