Crime and Justice in Maine

USM Criminology invites you to a series of conversations with leading figures in and around the criminal legal system in Maine. Join us for a discussion with Skye Gosselin and Kyle Bennett from Maine Youth Justice. If the University closes due to inclement weather, please join us on Zoom!

Skye Gosselin is twenty-two years old youth activist and community organizer for Maine Youth Justice. She is from Biddeford, Maine. She currently runs the political education team.

“I got into this work at the age of seventeen. I was incarcerated as a youth and realized that what was happening to many other kids like me and me wasn’t right. At seventeen, I joined Maine Inside Out. We did theater of the oppressed and shared our experiences with the communities to show what was going on right in their backyard. Then I realized it wasn’t enough to share art, and we needed to do more. I believe people with lived experience are the experts on what we need. I also believe that the current juvenile justice system in place is traumatic, and we need to dismantle it. ”

She was one of the first youth organizers for MYJ. She is now on the full-time staff and works every day to change how things currently are in Maine.  She is enrolled at USM for Political Education and hopes to further her education after graduation.

Kyle Bennett has been working with Maine Youth Justice since August 2021. “I am in MYJ because I was incarcerated for 4 years at Long Creek and it was awful. And I believe in our campaign to close long creek. One major accomplishment is public speaking i.e. just talking to reporters and talking on panels. Before MYJ I never got the chance to speak up and be heard.”