In a previous post, I wrote about racial politics in California state prisons and the hardened racial divisions that characterize incarcerated interactions.…
35 posts tagged FirstWatchBlog
Racing Backwards
I will never forget the first time I was exposed to racial politics in California state prisons (politics is the term incarcerated people in California use to refer to our unwritten social rules.)…
Thank You
Thanksgiving is coming up soon. This will be my 16th Thanksgiving in prison. Though I have many thoughts regarding my incarceration and world view of prison, I would like to use my Re:vision platform to express my gratitude.…
Why "Stop and Frisk” is Bad Policy
As a black kid in Ferguson, I was routinely stopped, searched, and questioned by the police in my hometown.…
A”dap”ting to Humanity
When I was in Corcoran (a “level 4” maximum security prison), strict racial politics existed on the prison yard.…
Facing the Wall
"When the correctional officers yell "Escort!" all incarcerated people are supposed to turn and face the wall."…
Can We Work this Out?
"Many incarcerated people are great workers, meaning, they work hard, are innovative and may have great work ethic, but people I encounter in or out of prison are not born designated as “workers.”"…
Classrooms, Not Cages
"When the pendulum started to swing, and rehabilitation and education began to be accepted for their ability to reduce recidivism, Tim took advantage of every opportunity."…
Members Only
"Problems with infrastructure, school superintendents and allocation of resources, and affordable healthcare are all important to me, incarcerated or not."…
About Art and Voting
There is a link between art and voting that is fairly obvious when you think about it. Both are means of expression, and therefore deeply personal things. But before exploring the similarities between the two, one fact must be established first.…
"Cell" Phones
"Six months prior to his parole board hearing, another unthinkable happened. Ben was caught with a cell phone."…
A Rebellious Act of Kindness
"On a deeper level though, these rules serve as constant reminders of the things we did to come to prison, and often undermine our ability to connect with our own humanity. So, it's easy to see why the chance to be humane towards someone, and in doing so, be humane to yourself, feels really good."…
Food or Fodder
"In the past decade and a half, I’ve been feeding my system whatever’s been fed to me."…
Sharing Privilege
"I believe that when you see a problem, it falls to you to work on correcting it. Therefore, my goal is to help create the optimism I feel in others, and I strive to do that by using my share of privilege for the benefit of my community."…
Doing the Work
"This is what doing work looks like. It is facing uncomfortable, often hidden faulty beliefs in yourself, and learning to empathize with the humanity of others."…
Paying My Debt
I want to pay back my debt to society. I want to do it with remorse, accountability, and amends. I also want to pay back my financial debt.…
Three Months, Three Cellies
A few of us sat quietly, taking it all in. All of us were pondering the same unanswered questions. How tense was the yard? Which old faces would we see? And most of all, who would we be placed in a cell with?…
Wireless Connection
"I have never experienced social media. I’ve been incarcerated for 15 and a half years. When I was last out there, there was no such thing as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat, YouTube. The term “social media” did not exist yet. Man, there weren't even any cameras on phones yet."…
Vicarious Joy
It's enough to make me wonder, what if, when one entered prison, the attitude was, what do we need to do to get you home? What if prisons positioned themselves as a place where people who'd committed harmful acts could learn how to relate to society in more healthy ways?…
The Check-In
She seemed troubled, but not overwhelmed by the event. The rest of us in the group however, were devastated. One by one, the men apologized to her.…