Housing Is the Difference Between Freedom and Incarceration

Radical Hospitality Ministries was born out of proximity, not theory.

Katrina and James Baugh met while working inside the justice system through the Justice Debate League, a nonprofit founded by Katrina that brings debate education into United States prisons. For years, they built relationships with people who were incarcerated, listening to their stories, understanding the barriers they faced, and witnessing firsthand how difficult it is to survive reentry even after a sentence is complete.

When COVID-19 shut down access to prisons, Katrina and James faced a choice. They could pause their work, or they could respond to what they already knew was true.

“If we cannot go in, we will help them get out,” Katrina says.

That decision became Radical Hospitality Ministries.

The Hidden Crisis of “Dead Time”

Housing is not simply a post-release issue. In Illinois, thousands of people remain incarcerated not because of new convictions, but because they do not have an approved address to return to upon release. This time is often referred to as “dead time” — incarceration that does not count toward a sentence and serves no public safety purpose.

Research confirms what Katrina and James observed directly: without housing, people cannot be released, cannot stabilize, and cannot move forward. Illinois releases roughly 28,000 people from prison each year, yet the state provides almost no coordinated housing support for reentry, resulting in homelessness, extended incarceration, and high rates of return to prison.

Radical Hospitality Ministries exists to interrupt that cycle.

Housing Discrimination Is Real — Even When It’s Illegal

Under the Illinois Human Rights Act, discrimination based on criminal history in housing is unlawful. Yet enforcement is weak, and recourse is rare. Landlords routinely deny applications without explanation, municipalities use zoning and licensing processes to block reentry housing, and community opposition often overrides evidence-based policy.

Katrina and James experienced this personally. Even as homeowners seeking to share their residence with formerly incarcerated individuals, they were denied housing opportunities themselves. The message was clear: people returning from prison are not welcome, even when the law says otherwise.

The Illinois Reentry Housing Demonstration Program documented these same barriers statewide. Program staff consistently encountered landlord resistance, fear-based assumptions, and municipal ordinances that made securing housing extraordinarily difficult — even when rent subsidies and support services were fully funded

What the Evidence Shows Works

During the COVID-19 crisis, the Illinois Justice Project, Safer Foundation, and TASC launched the Reentry Housing Demonstration Program to test what happens when housing and support are provided together.

The results were clear.

Participants who received stable housing combined with case management, healthcare access, employment support, and basic needs assistance were approximately one-third less likely to return to prison than comparable individuals released during the same period. Recidivism among participants was 21%, compared to 32% in the comparison group

The program also confirmed that housing alone is not enough. Success depended on relational support, navigation of complex systems, and low-barrier access to services. These findings directly mirror Radical Hospitality Ministries’ model: housing paired with presence, advocacy, and connection.

Radical Hospitality Is Not a Program — It’s a Practice

Through partnerships with faith communities, service providers, and local advocates, Radical Hospitality Ministries offers more than a bed. Clients are connected to counseling, healthcare, employment resources, and community support because reentry is not a moment — it is a process.

Reentry housing is not charity. It is public safety.

The state of Illinois spends over $150,000 per recidivism event when incarceration, victimization, and indirect costs are combined. By contrast, stable housing with supportive services costs significantly less and produces better outcomes for individuals, families, and communities.

When people have a place to live, they are more likely to maintain employment, manage health needs, comply with supervision requirements, and rebuild relationships. Housing creates the conditions for accountability, not avoidance.

Answering the Call

Radical Hospitality Ministries exists because the gap between law and reality is too wide, and the cost of inaction is too high.

The evidence is clear. The need is documented. The outcomes are proven.

What remains is the collective will to treat housing as the foundation of justice rather than a reward for surviving it.

To support Radical Hospitality Ministries and learn more about their reentry housing work, visit radicalhospitalityministries.com. Contributions, partnerships, and advocacy help ensure that release from prison truly means a return to community, not another form of confinement.