The 48th Congress of International PEN
The 48th Congress of International PEN, the global writers’ organization dedicated to spreading the word and defending its servants, was quite a show. Norman Mailer, president of PEN American… More
Criminal Injustice
Many important lessons were taught by Hurricane Katrina, which demolished a large area along the gulf coast and killed more than one thousand people in Louisiana and Mississippi in… More
A Fine, Fine Day
I It was too late for the Avenue so I headed downtown to the corner of Jones and Eddy. There, the sidewalk is stain’d with the lives of the… More
That’s the Way It Is in Prison
Murf the Surf and I are walking in the rain past the steam plant heading back to the Southwest Unit. The chapel is off to our left, separated from… More
To Eat or Not to Eat, That Is the Question
An Examination of the Food Culture at One Modern American Detention Center Fictional and nonfictional accounts[1] of prison[2] life all point out the centrality of food in a prisoner’s life.… More
Judgment Walk
My adolescent years are the most vivid of my memories. Maybe because they were the most intense and shaky of my life experiences. Back then nothing seemed normal.… More
How to Survive in Prison
Find out your boyfriend got married. Spend as much time in the yard as possible. Learn to fit in. Become someone’s girlfriend. Stop thinking about the outside world. Join… More
Juvenile Adults
When it comes to our criminal justice system, policies are too often incoherent and irrational. One of the most glaring examples of this is also one of the least… More
I Hear The Train Comin…
Although I’m sure the world outside these prison walls is likely to forget and ignore the human beings banished to these small plots of land, to be abandoned by… More
Walk Like a Man
Who’s Your Daddy? My birth mother’s name was Lula Mae. After her death my two sisters, three brothers, and I were taken in by various relatives. Melvin, the… More
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