Category: Fellow Inmates

Gordon Grilz writes about the loaded language used to label people in prison — and why labeling people in a dehumanizing way does nobody any…

Alex Friedmann explains how a plea bargain can pressure defendants into accepting life without parole simply to escape harsh pretrial confinement. Why would a defendant…

Arnold Barnes III writes about hustles in prison and the many ways incarcerated people use talent, labor, and creativity to get basic necessities, build up…

Jerry Metcalf recounts the terrifying moments of a deadly fire in prison, when guards fled through choking smoke and locked inmates were left to suffocate—until…

Jeremy Busby writes about a friend on death row whose influence transformed his life in prison and whose legacy continues long after his execution by…

In this essay from inside a prison kitchen, James Berman writes about baking a strawberry-frosted prison kitchen cake for 60 incarcerated men and discovering something…

In this story, Lucas from Texas describes a weekend prison “lock-in” at the Jester 3 Unit that unexpectedly became a powerful emotional experience—one that made…

Daniel Harris writes about the frustration of collective punishment in Texas prisons — when lockdowns, lost privileges, and harsh restrictions fall on everyone because of…

Terry Sellers describes how personal growth in prison began with a blunt warning from an older mentor and evolved into a life-changing journey from anger…

In prison, it’s not necessary for you to be a racist in order for you to act like one, to live within the confines of…

Like many other communities, prison is largely self-segregated. Considering the psychodynamics within, this is not unexpected. One of the biggest surprises of prison life, however,…

Andrew Krosch reflects on prison friendship — a fragile, complicated bond, shaped as much by unspoken rules and survival instincts as by genuine human connection.…

I’d never heard of Alexis Patterson until I had a conversation with an inmate over the summer (2021) about her. I’ve since learned, through friends…

Beau Brown explains how life in solitary strips a person to their core, revealing truths about prison, punishment, and the fragile threads of humanity that…

Although sexual predators in prison aren’t that common after PREA, Steven Williams describes how a predator named Seventeen was consistently harassing his young friend Dax,…

Tracy Lee Kendall continues his profile of Monty Lee Johnston, a white supremacist gang leader who got out of prison and returned to volunteer at…