Black August Bail Out Honors Legacy of Resistance and Black Freedom Dreams

By Elisabeth Long

From PHN Issue 34, Fall 2017

“Money kept them in. Black love got them out.”

— Pat Hussain, Co-founder of Southerners on New Ground

This August, activists bailed out 51 Black women, queer and trans folks across the South as part of the Black August Bail Out organized by Southerners on New Ground (SONG). SONG is a Queer Liberation organization made up of people of color, immigrants, undocumented people, people with disabilities, working class and rural and small town lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) people in the South. The Black August Bail Out is a continuation of bail outs happening around the country that began with the Mama’s Day Bail Out in May. Organizers found people to bail out in several ways, such as using public records requests and allying with public defenders. They met with women inside to ask their permission to bail them out and to find out what their needs might be after being released. In addition to bail, donated funds were used to provide short-term housing, healthcare, transportation, drug treatment, mental health care and other support services to people the activists bailed out. Continue reading “Black August Bail Out Honors Legacy of Resistance and Black Freedom Dreams” →

Polluted Prisons: When the building you live in is bad for your health

by Suzy Subways

From PHN Issue 32, Spring 2017

Flint, Michigan residents and Native Americans at Standing Rock, North Dakota are demanding that their drinking water be protected from chemical poisons. The world has begun to hear their words: “Water is Life.” People in prison are speaking up too. Continue reading “Polluted Prisons: When the building you live in is bad for your health” →

How to Organize a Memorial or Celebration

by Lisa Strawn

From PHN Issue 30, Fall 2016

I’m writing to give people in prison advice on how to put together a memorial or celebration. In June, I put together a Celebration of Life for the Orlando shooting victims at the facility where I’m housed. Continue reading “How to Organize a Memorial or Celebration” →

Some of the World’s Greatest Minds Are in Prison

by Bobby Bostic

From PHN Issue 29, Summer 2016

Prison is a place where you can find scholars of every kind. The system can lock up a person’s body, but they can’t incarcerate our minds. Right here, we have some of the world’s greatest minds. We have scientists, mathematicians, and preachers. In fact, many of you have excelled in the most difficult of all politics—prison politics. These politics can get really messy. But people in here network to make things happen on scales great and small. We must continue to apply ourselves and not settle for a label that society has placed on us. Continue reading “Some of the World’s Greatest Minds Are in Prison” →

Making Sure HIV Isn’t Treated Like a Crime

by Suzy Subways

From PHN Issue 29, Summer 2016

Did you know some laws make punishments much harsher if you are living with HIV? In Pennsylvania, if someone in prison is convicted of spitting on a guard, 10 years can be added to their sentence if they have HIV. Many states have similar laws. Do you think that’s fair? Continue reading “Making Sure HIV Isn’t Treated Like a Crime” →

Immigrants in Texas Want Health, Freedom

by Suzy Subways

From PHN Issue 24, Spring 2015

Immigrants held in two federal Texas facilities run by profit-driven private companies are refusing to tolerate neglect of their health and unsafe conditions. Continue reading “Immigrants in Texas Want Health, Freedom” →

Truly Understanding the Connection between HIV and Incarceration

By Laura McTighe

From PHN Issue 24, Spring 2015

We know that HIV and incarceration overlap. One in seven people with HIV will pass through our prisons and jails this year. But knowing that HIV and incarceration overlap doesn’t tell us why. Understanding why is critical if we are to end AIDS. Continue reading “Truly Understanding the Connection between HIV and Incarceration” →

PTSD: The Enemy Within

By S. Muhammad Hyland
From PHN Issue 23, Winter 2015

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), an anxiety disorder that can arise after an actual or threatened death or serious injury to self or others, too often goes undiagnosed. Formerly known as shell shock syndrome, PTSD was once considered to plague only soldiers. Today, statistics tell a different story.

Neighborhood Violence

Denizens of inner cities across America also suffer from this dangerous disorder but routinely go unnoticed. If PTSD can be successfully used to defend violent criminal behavior perpetrated by current or former troops, it should work that same way for inner-city minorities. Both groups of people are subject to the same feelings created by their respective environments. Continue reading “PTSD: The Enemy Within” →

There’s No Shame in Love

by Jose de Marco

From PHN Issue 19, Winter 2014

I’m Jose de Marco. My father was Latino, my mother was African-American. I’m a man that loves other men.

I believe if people were more accepting of who they are, they would not care when other people criticize them about who they love. But you have to get to the point where outside influences—whether it’s church, your teacher, your mother, or your brother—your happiness cannot depend on the permission of other people. Continue reading “There’s No Shame in Love” →

Open Letter to Activists on the Outside

by Sergio Hyland

From PHN Issue 18, Fall 2013

I’m not one of those people who accept the notion that the existence of prisons is inevitable, because if I accept that, I’ll have to accept other associated notions as fact. Like the notion that the thousands of inhumane solitary confinement torture chambers across the nation have to exist. Because I’m on the inside and see the reality of these places, I definitely can’t accept the notion that prisons keep our communities safe! Continue reading “Open Letter to Activists on the Outside” →