I’m sitting here reminiscing on the years I spent behind bars, and I can’t help but recall the holiday seasons I lived through. To be exact, I spent 18 Christmases and 17 New Years days incarcerated. Continue reading
Monthly Archives: December 2014
Supervision after Incarceration Is Not that Difficult
Today I can’t help but reminisce about the women I left behind in Federal Prison. Some of them are serving LIFE sentences for lesser crimes than I have committed. Continue reading
Sean Thompson-El is a Man Who Achieved His Goals, Despite Nearly 30 Years in Prison
Sean Thompson-El is a 49-year old man who has spent almost 30 years in prison. He was released four years ago and he had a five-year plan that he put into action. He wanted to obtain his Master’s Degree and step up to the plate as the Patriarch of his family. Continue reading
Four Tips for Re-Entry
“The world that we left was long gone. The danger was that our ideas had become frozen in time. Prison is a still point in a turning world, and it is very easy to remain in the same place in jail while the world moves on.” Nelson Mandela – A Long Walk to Freedom. Continue reading
Missing Phyllis Hardy: Remembering a Senior Citizen in Prison
It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and as the Christmas holiday draws near, I can’t help but think about a women I left behind in federal prison. When I was incarcerated the most exciting time during this time of year was New Year’s Eve. That day marks the end of a long arduous 365 day cycle and brings most inmates closer to release. When I went to prison in 1993 I never imagined I would endure over 6,750 days in prison. Continue reading
Darius Clark Monroe’s Film, Evolution of a Criminal, and Thoughts on College After Incarceration
Last week I participated in a panel discussion following the screening of a film called Evolution of a Criminal, by Darius Clark Monroe. The film was a self-made documentary about Darius Clark’s decision to rob a bank where he held several of its customers at gunpoint, and it tracks his life as an aspiring filmmaker as he confronts his criminal past, faces the victims of the robbery, and comes face to face with resentment, forgiveness, redemption and uncertainty. I thought it was a compelling, heart wrenching film. Continue reading