I watched my friend’s face with skepticism. No one in their right mind hoped for something so sinister. Yet his steady eyes only stared back at me, repeating what he had just said: “Seriously, part of me hopes I catch [...]
In October of 2008, my then-girlfriend and I were denied an apartment, forcing us to move back to Arlington from Chicago. At the time I was 26 years old. My family and I were still being punished for a felony theft [...]
The expression "when the time hits you" is used in reference to inmates with long sentences. It’s the moment when long-term incarceration forces an inmate to assess the gravity of his situation. I’m talking 15-year sentences -- or more. Now, I [...]
The world changed when a shocked nation saw the horrific video of George Floyd’s life being snuffed out by officer Derek Chauvin. Floyd’s death sparked outrage and in the aftermath people took to the streets--white and black together--wearing their Black Lives [...]
I was four years old when my mom vanished out of thin air one day. Both of my parents were high school dropouts and were involved in their second marriages. My father had already produced seven other children that he was [...]
I came up around people that lived the street life. And in that setting, you learn a set of skills that helps you survive. If you go to a jungle, you learn a set of skills. Likewise with a desert, the [...]
With the mass-rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines across the US, vaccination is being offered inside state prisons nationwide and have been for a number of months. Prison-systems alone have regularly account for double-digit percentages of many states' new daily, weekly, [...]
My earliest release date is 2041. According to the World Almanac, my life expectancy as a Black man is 67 years old. I'll be 66 years old in 2041, if I am released. If I make it. I came to prison [...]