Katherine Irwin

Katherine Irwin is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Hawaii, Manoa who arrived to academic world through an unusual route. Her father spent five years in prison for armed robbery and taught his children, first, that human beings are more than the sum total of the worst mistakes that they have made in their lives. He also argued that we can not cure the problem of violence through retributive punishments and prison. Changing people’s lives requires complex solutions, and Dr. Irwin has dedicated her life's work to creating opportunities for radical change to happen for individuals, schools, communities, and the justice system. Jacked Up and Unjust, coauthored with Karen Umemoto, is her second book. She has also published numerous academic journal articles regarding youth violence prevention, ethnographic methods, inequalities and delinquency, and youth culture. She is also dedicated to building culturally respectful, gender responsive, and non-punitive delinquency prevention programs for public school students.

Find more at https://jackedupandunjust.wordpress.com/