About the f5c
We Believe in Young People. Not Youth Prisons.
The Final 5 Campaign is a youth-led, statewide movement working to close Illinois' six remaining youth prisons and build a future rooted in healing, opportunity, and community care instead of incarceration.
We are a collective of formerly incarcerated young people, directly impacted families, organizers, advocates, and community members united by one belief: No child belongs in prison.
For generations, our communities have witnessed the devastating impact of youth incarceration, particularly on Black and Brown young people. Instead of addressing the root causes of harm, poverty, and violence, our systems have too often responded with punishment, isolation, and confinement. We know that locking young people away does not create the safety, healing, or opportunities our communities deserve.
We believe there is another way.
Founded in 2020, the Final 5 Campaign is building a movement that challenges the idea that prisons are necessary to keep our communities safe. Through grassroots organizing, youth leadership development, advocacy, political education, and creative expression, we are shifting power back into the hands of young people and communities most impacted by incarceration.
Our fight is about more than closing buildings. It is about transforming the conditions that lead young people into the juvenile legal system in the first place. We advocate for investments in education, mental health services, housing, restorative justice, violence prevention, and community-based resources that allow young people and their families to thrive.
We believe accountability does not have to mean incarceration. We believe healing is possible without punishment. And we believe the people closest to the harm must be at the center of creating meaningful solutions.
At Final 5, young people are not just participants in the movement. They are the leaders, visionaries, and changemakers shaping what comes next.
Our vision is an Illinois where youth prisons are a thing of the past, where communities have the resources to address harm and support healing, and where every young person has the freedom to imagine and build their own future.
We are not simply fighting to close the Final 6. We are fighting to make sure there is never a next five.
Close the Prisons. Invest in Youth. Build the Future.
Strategic values
Transformation over Reformation. We believe we must close youth prisons to holistically take care of the mental, emotional, financial and material needs of young people. We believe youth prisons are not effectively taking care of young people or protecting the safety of our communities.
Needs-Based. We believe the needs of youth cannot be met in youth prisons, and thus strive towards a future where the material well-being of young people is cultivated in other ways. We also consider the needs of those affected by youth incarceration: families, neighborhoods, police officers, correctional officers, legislators, and beyond. We believe that in the long term, the needs of all people can best be met through the closing of youth prisons and investing in communities.
Creativity & Collaboration. We believe in the power of creative thinking and collaboration across skillsets, perspectives and beliefs. While we know there is a better alternative to youth prisons, we believe it takes the minds and imaginations of many to build those alternatives.
A Table Open to All. The table is set with our mission and values, but it is open to all who'd like a seat. We believe we are stronger for leaving a seat open, as a reminder that not everyone is yet ready to join us and it is our job to invite them into the work.
Patience in Practice. While we aim for the expedient closing of youth prisons, our campaign is led with patience. In an effort to reduce harm, create room for healing (for all), and in order to effectively communicate with those not yet at the table, we practice patience. This work is years in the making, just as the lives of all affected by system involvement. We take the long view, and do so with patient and loving hearts.
Who We are
The Final 5 Campaign is comprised of a coalition of formerly incarcerated youth, families impacted by the juvenile legal system, and allies who are committed to closing youth prisons and believe in investing in communities. Sound like you? Join us.