An Event for The Young and Incarcerated

By Jeralyn, Section Juvenile Offenders
Posted on Tue May 08, 2007 at 03:53:15 PM EST
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Here's a group and event that deserves some notice:

Hear Us Out
Wednesday, May 16, 2007 @ 7:00 PM
The Thurgood Marshall Center*
1816 12th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20009
Hear Us Out will feature the writings of 16 and 17-year olds who have been charged and incarcerated as adults in the DC Jail. Poems will be read by Free Minds members who have been released and are now living and working in the DC community. Come celebrate their successes at this free community event!

Though I am behind these bars I'll start my life anew
Despite these walls around me
My sun will still shine through
by Leon, age 17, "Sunshine"
You are invited to bring a new or used paperback book for the DC Jail's new lending library. Invite your friends. Light refreshments will be served.

The event is sponsored by the Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop:

More...

Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop is a 501©3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to introduce young inmates to the transformative power of books and creative writing. By mentoring them and connecting them to supportive services throughout their incarceration into reentry, Free Minds inspires these youth to see their potential and achieve new educational and career goals. Since 2002, Free Minds has served nearly 200 youth.

The link to the website is here.

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An Event for The Young and Incarcerated | 11 comments (11 topical)

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It's ging against the grain here, but (none / 0) (#1)
by Deconstructionist on Tue May 08, 2007 at 04:06:52 PM EST

"I used to live just day to day with no goals or expectations. Jail was mentally hard, but it made me think about who I was and what I wanted for myself."

The words of this youthful offender suggest inarceration can serve a positive purpose for the offender. If incarceration also includes counseling and rehabilitative programs it can save some people.

Right on Decon.... (none / 0) (#4)
by kdog on Tue May 08, 2007 at 06:51:33 PM EST

emphasis on the counseling and rehabilitation programs. They can make time locked up a positive life changing experience, as opposed to simply torturous punishment.

I think our prison system worked a lot better in the pre-drug war past. With all the over-crowding and privatizing, there isn't the money or the incentive to rehabilitate anybody anymore. We warehouse people now, with some exceptions, like this fine organization.

[ Parent ]

I'm NOT (none / 0) (#5)
by Deconstructionist on Tue May 08, 2007 at 06:56:25 PM EST

defending the penal system we have. i'm saying that we must incarcerate some people but it's important to do more than warehouse people as if they were sub-humans. We need prisons but we also need far more programs with goals such as this one.

[ Parent ]

I know.... (none / 0) (#6)
by kdog on Tue May 08, 2007 at 07:26:59 PM EST

I said right on bro, I agree with you.

Even an anti chains and cages extremist like myself realizes we have to lock some people up...but our society has gone lock-up crazy. Rehabilitation got thrown out the window in our zeal to chain and cage. We have to chain and cage Paris Hilton for 45 days (maybe), chain and cage a guy driving reefer up the interstate for years...non-profit organizations are left to try and turn some lives around. It's nuts.

End of rant.

[ Parent ]

: I agree we greatly (none / 0) (#8)
by Deconstructionist on Tue May 08, 2007 at 07:31:52 PM EST

over-employ incarceration (however ftom what I read I wouldn't say Hilton is an example of that).
More and more jurisdictions are looking at alternative sentencing -- primarily perhaps because of the cost of incarceration as opposed to any enlightened philosophies, but we will always need prisons. And, in my opinion, not just for the unrepentant violent offenders among us. In fact, in terms of the deterrent effect, it think it works less on most violent offenders and more on the types who commit calculated eceonomic crimes.

[ Parent ]

Heh (none / 0) (#2)
by Gabriel Malor on Tue May 08, 2007 at 04:38:26 PM EST

Leon, age 17, should be asking why someone named kc is using his poem in the online dating sites.

He'll also be curious to know why "juggalette nipps," age 18, female, from Ohio, posted it on her myspace back in October.

I'm not even going to ask (none / 0) (#3)
by Deconstructionist on Tue May 08, 2007 at 06:17:21 PM EST

how you happen to know that.

[ Parent ]

Heh. (none / 0) (#7)
by Gabriel Malor on Tue May 08, 2007 at 07:28:47 PM EST

I used to tutor a lot of high school students. Now, whenever I see written work from that age group I have to fight the urge to google it and check for plagiarism. There was just something too perfect about that quoted stanza, so I checked it.

I'm not saying that this prisoner plagiarised his work. In fact, it's possible that a coupla other folks "borrowed" the poem from him. But it was kinduva funny discovery. The internet is full of wierd stuff like that.

[ Parent ]

: A likely story.... (none / 0) (#9)
by Deconstructionist on Tue May 08, 2007 at 07:45:43 PM EST

[ Parent ]

sanitized bits (none / 0) (#10)
by diogenes on Tue May 08, 2007 at 11:07:34 PM EST

I went to the website; what isn't prominent is what the 16 year olds were convicted of that got them into the adult system. At least in New York, you have to have a long rap sheet or a serious crime to not be in juvenile.
Gabriel Major, you are in the cynic hall of fame!

: Heh. (none / 0) (#11)
by Gabriel Malor on Tue May 08, 2007 at 11:42:13 PM EST

Just when it comes to 16 to 18 year old "writers."

[ Parent ]