On Monday, a group of formerly incarcerated activists organized a presidential town hall to discuss criminal justice reform with the 2020 Democrats, and you probably didn’t hear much about it. This has nothing to do with the herculean efforts of the organizers, and everything to do with the paltry participation. In total, only three candidates showed up.

Senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker and billionaire Tom Steyer were the three presidential hopefuls who came to Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia — a former prison-turned-historic site — to sit down with MSNBC’s Ari Melber and various moderators in front of an intimate audience of formerly incarcerated people brought together by Voters Organized to Educate. The candidates addressed their stances on everything from private prisons, voting rights for currently and formerly incarcerated people, mandatory minimums, and their personal records on criminal justice. It was a wide-ranging conversation with potential implications for millions of Americans, and yet it didn’t rise to the level of importance of, say, the Iowa State Fair.

Booker called the absence of his fellow candidates "unacceptable" and said he was "surprised and angry" this event wasn’t a priority for them. And rightfully so. All 10 candidates who qualified for the September presidential debate were invited, according to an event spokesperson, and candidates who didn’t qualify but reached out proactively were considered. That means eight candidates were invited and didn’t make it their business to be at the first-of-its-kind event.

Here are some stats, per the event organizers, to underscore just how many people are impacted by our unrelenting “justice” system: approximately 2.3 million people are held in US prisons and jails, giving our country the highest incarceration rate in the world; more than 10 million people pass through the nation’s jails each year; nearly five million Americans are under the control of the criminal justice system through parole and probation; half of all American adults has had a family member in prison; five million children have experienced the incarceration of their residential parent.

But the point of the Justice Votes forum was to remind us that incarcerated people and their families are more than just numbers: they’re individual human beings whose lives have been forever changed by a system that focuses almost entirely on punishment, and too little on restoration and forgiveness.

In her onstage remarks, Andrea James, the founder and executive director of the National Council For Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, who herself spent two years in prison, made stark how little attention Americans pay to the historic and ongoing human toll of mass incarceration. Referring to the many recent protests to the Trump administration’s family separation policy at our southern border, James said, “When we as a country stand up and recognize the atrocities of separating mothers and families from children [at the border], yet we don’t recognize in this country that we have done this since slavery, and continue to do it every single day, and the harm that it has caused communities, [that] is just something that is criminal in itself.”

The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Show all 25 1 /25 The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Bernie Sanders The Vermont senator has launched a second bid for president after losing out to Hilary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic primaries. He is running on a similar platform of democratic socialist reform Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Joe Biden The former vice president recently faced scrutiny for inappropriate touching of women, but was thought to deal with the criticism well and has since maintained a front runner status in national polling EPA The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Elizabeth Warren The Massachusetts senator is a progressive Democrat, and a major supporter of regulating Wall Street Reuters The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Amy Klobuchar Klobuchar is a Minnesota senator who earned praise for her contribution to the Brett Kavanaugh hearings Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Michael Bloomberg Michael Bloomberg, a late addition to the 2020 race, announced his candidacy after months of speculation in November. He has launched a massive ad-buying campaign and issued an apology for the controversial "stop and frisk" programme that adversely impacted minority communities in New York City when he was mayor Getty Images The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 Tulsi Gabbard The Hawaii congresswoman announced her candidacy in January, but has faced tough questions on her past comments on LGBT+ rights and her stance on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Pete Buttigieg The centrist Indiana mayor and war veteran would be the first openly LGBT+ president in American history Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Deval Patrick The former Massachusetts governor launched a late 2020 candidacy and received very little reception. With just a few short months until the first voters flock to the polls, the former governor is running as a centrist and believes he can unite the party's various voting blocs AFP/Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Beto O'Rourke The former Texas congressman formally launched his bid for the presidency in March. He ran on a progressive platform, stating that the US is driven by "gross differences in opportunity and outcome" AP The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Kamala Harris The former California attorney general was introduced to the national stage during Jeff Sessions’ testimony. She has endorsed Medicare-for-all and proposed a major tax-credit for the middle class AFP/Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Bill De Blasio The New York mayor announced his bid on 16 May 2019. He emerged in 2013 as a leading voice in the left wing of his party but struggled to build a national profile and has suffered a number of political setbacks in his time as mayor AFP/Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Steve Bullock The Montana governor announced his bid on 14 May. He stated "We need to defeat Donald Trump in 2020 and defeat the corrupt system that lets campaign money drown out the people's voice, so we can finally make good on the promise of a fair shot for everyone." He also highlighted the fact that he won the governor's seat in a red [Republican] state Reuters The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Cory Booker The New Jersey Senator has focused on restoring kindness and civility in American politics throughout his campaign, though he has failed to secure the same level of support and fundraising as several other senators running for the White House in 2020 Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Wayne Messam Mayor of the city of Miramar in the Miami metropolitan area, Wayne Messam said he intended to run on a progressive platform against the "broken" federal government. He favours gun regulations and was a signatory to a letter from some 400 mayors condemning President Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord Vice News The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Kirsten Gillibrand The New York Senator formally announced her presidential bid in January, saying that “healthcare should be a right, not a privilege” Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: John Delaney The Maryland congressman was the first to launch his bid for presidency, making the announcement in 2017 AP The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Andrew Yang The entrepreneur announced his presidential candidacy by pledging that he would introduce a universal basic income of $1,000 a month to every American over the age of 18 Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Julian Castro The former San Antonio mayor announced his candidacy in January and said that his running has a “special meaning” for the Latino community in the US Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Marianne Williamson The author and spiritual adviser has announced her intention to run for president. She had previously run for congress as an independent in 2014 but was unsuccessful Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Eric Swalwell One of the younger candidates, Swalwell has served on multiple committees in the House of Representatives. He intended to make gun control central to his campaign but dropped out after his team said it was clear there was no path to victory Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Seth Moulton A Massachusetts congressman, Moulton is a former US soldier who is best known for trying to stop Nancy Pelosi from becoming speaker of the house. He dropped out of the race after not polling well in key states Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Jay Inslee Inslee has been governor of Washington since 2013. His bid was centred around climate change AFP/Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: John Hickenlooper The former governor of Colorado aimed to sell himself as an effective leader who was open to compromise, but failed to make a splash on the national stage Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Tim Ryan Ohio representative Tim Ryan ran on a campaign that hinged on his working class roots, though his messaging did not appear to resonate with voters Getty The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020 DROPPED OUT: Tom Steyer Democratic presidential hopeful billionaire and philanthropist Tom Steyer is a longtime Democratic donor AFP/Getty

And when the people vying to hold the highest political office in the country aren’t actively recognizing this painful history and continued destruction of families, it can be difficult to feel like there’s an end in sight.

Late last week, another presidential forum on criminal justice reform made headlines after Harris initially backed out because one of the sponsors presented President Trump with an award for his criminal justice efforts. (Harris agreed to participate in the forum at Benedict College — a historically black college — after the controversial sponsor pulled out.) While she may face added scrutiny for her record as San Francisco District Attorney and California Attorney General, Harris clearly isn’t shying away from directly facing the people who may have been impacted by her pre-Senate career.

Coincidentally, former Congressman Beto O'Rourke published his plan to end mass incarceration just hours before the forum, in which he mentioned meeting with incarcerated individuals in California and formerly incarcerated people in Chicago. Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro also met with currently incarcerated people in Washington, DC, on Monday. These efforts, while noted and appreciated, still don’t excuse the candidates’ absence.

South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg released his criminal justice plan on Saturday, but instead chose to attend the annual conference of pro-Israel lobbying group J Street, along with Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Senator Michael Bennet and Castro. Video messages from Former Vice President Joe Biden, Senator Elizabeth Warren, O’Rourke, Andrew Yang and Marianne Williamson were played at the gathering.

As the event wrapped up, James walked briskly through the drafty hallway outside the event space leading to one of Eastern State’s old cell blocks. As she did, she braced her arms and shuddered, remarking, “It’s like being back in prison!” Though she said it with a smile and quick laugh, it’s hard to take it as a joke.

This past winter in the midst of a “polar vortex”, Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center — a jail for mostly pre-trial inmates who haven’t been convicted of a crime — experienced a week-long power outage. People were locked in cells without heat while temperatures outside plunged below freezing. They banged on their windows and shouted, while protesters outside (including me) demanded the facility do something. “Animals get treated better,” the wife of one of the men detained at the time told the Huffington Post.

Currently and formerly incarcerated people deserve much more than simple dignity and respect. As those unfortunate enough to most acutely understand what mass incarceration does to individuals and families, they should have multiple seats at the table when 2020 candidates envision a more humane criminal justice system. But when most of the candidates can’t even show up for one afternoon with them, it can make them feel invisible.