By Justin Schnebelen | Project Intern
With the advent of a new year here at Free Minds and the Prison Book Club, we look back on a year that reveals a spirit of joy and self-nourishment. In the many miles of space between us and our members in federal prison—a space filled with a resurgent pandemic and precarious circumstances in our national life—our members’ persistent engagement never ceases to edify us. For your indelible support for our work and the lives and voices of our members: thank you! We couldn’t do it without you.
It is your support, in the end, which makes possible expressions of gratitude such as these possible. “I read every book that you send, and digest every Connect that I receive in the mail,” writes long-time FM Member Stephen, who is incarcerated at USP Florence in Colorado. “I always read them thoroughly in search of a topic, question, or prompt that I can lend my voice to…You have empowered me to write new chapters of my life. And this has led me to empower others to do the same...I can never thank you guys enough…My mind will always be free.” In response to a letter from us, another member who is incarcerated in Florida, Wes, writes, “I really appreciate you guys reaching out to me. I feel like I’m connected to a real family like my own without judgement of race or my ability. I thank you guys for unlocking something in me.”
Support Going the Distance
Among the many obstacles of the past few months was the sudden relocation of several members from the DC Jail to USP Lewisburg, a federal prison in Pennsylvania, following federal findings of inhumane conditions at the DC Jail, long known to locals. Separated from family, legal aid, and their book club, FM staff and volunteers from our Weekly Letter Writers Circle were sure to regain connection and intentionally send letters of encouragement.
Books are even crossing borders. We mailed a package to member Humberto, who was deported after his release to a small town in Guatemala in early November. We sent three books written in Spanish, which didn’t arrive until mid-January. Humberto had been waiting patiently for them to arrive. He plans to use the Spanish Bible to help him teach Sunday School. As FM Co-Founder and Executive Director Tara says, “Books are going international!”
All the mutual love, at last, also comes home. One year ago, FM Member Gene was still incarcerated. At an On The Same Page event this past Martin Luther King Jr Day, however, his poem “My Higher Purpose” touched the hearts of volunteers from the International Monetary Fund. “If love is the essence of all humans,” he penned then, “then our true purpose must be to spread love.” Fast forward one year, Gene has returned home from federal prison via the Second Look Act and now has been named the 2022 Congressman John Lewis Fellow. This full-time fellowship provides a formerly incarcerated Free Minds member the opportunity to gain valuable professional, leadership, and advocacy experience while working as a staff member for Free Minds. "A Prison Book Club poem author is now home and immediately leading our community outreach program!” writes Tara.
An Offering By Members For Us to Receive, For Us to Witness
With When You Hear Me (You Hear Us): Voices on Youth Incarceration hot off the presses and glowingly reviewed, the only thing left for our third book (thanks to your support!) was for our members to lay eyes on the finished product as our next Books Across Miles title. Demonstrating both the collective impact of the prison system and our collective responsibility to create a society where every one of us can thrive, this collection includes firsthand accounts from both the young people charged and incarcerated in the adult criminal legal system and from the community at large: the mothers, the loved ones, the correctional staff, public defenders, prosecutors, and others harmed and left with unhealed trauma. “These authors, scribes, poets, and architects of wordplay give up their souls to inspire our hearts,” writes Shaka Senghor, author of Writing My Wrongs: Life, Death, and Redemption in an American Prison, in the anthology’s foreword. FM Member Author, who is incarcerated in Maryland, shared: “I felt at home within my heart and my mind to have my voice, my struggle, my humanity tied together in hope and in love with the voices of so many others. The blight of incarceration, the criminalization of our Blk youth, is made flesh and bones and life is breathed into the rejected, misunderstood via the reality that When You Hear Me creates.” To FM Member Robert behind the walls in Florida, the title of the book means, “That I have a voice! That I’m human. That we are human. That we are valued! That we can change! That we are not animals. That each person is much more complex than the sum total of their mistakes!” Likewise, to FM Member William incarcerated in Florida, “The title…means my voice is a part of a choir. We may share different sides of the stage, yet we’re singing the same song. My voice may not reach the ears of Congress, but the ‘us’ will.” Thank you all for contributing the harmony that is Free Minds.
Connecting in Joy and Nourishment
The past few months, we released two issues of the Connect, our bimonthly publication featuring poetry, essays, and art from Free Minds members, staff, and friends. While no one could foresee the force with which the Delta and Omicron variants would redirect our lives once again, we felt that amidst these uncertainties a theme of joy could serve as a needed lift—and illuminate how to experience it through individual and collective suffering. Our team and members were up to the task, with the following submissions:
Building on our theme of joy, our December issue focused on the theme of nourish. We posed to our members: what gives you strength, courage, and hope for the future? And, of course, we had to know about favorite foods, delicious commissary recipes, and flavorful food for thought.
We can’t thank you enough for the support you provide our members. We are indebted to you!
By Sofia Dean | Project Intern
By Imanee Magee | Program Assistant
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