Supporting Voices on the Inside: Read the New Stateville Speaks!
I’m happy to announce the Winter 2023 issue of Stateville Speaks, a publication I am working on, is out now! You can view it online here:
Stateville-Speaks-Layout-Winter-FINAL.pdf (statevillespeaks.org)
For anyone who doesn’t know, Stateville Speaks is one of the oldest prison publications in the country, started almost 20 years ago. I’m excited to be working on the newspaper with Erica Meiners, who I’ve known since organizing to close Tamms prison, and Maya Schenwar, from Truthout where I frequently publish. Additionally, artist River Kerstetter has added snazzy new graphics to our newly revamped version of Stateville Speaks. Orion Meadows, formerly-incarcerated spoken word artist is also joining us.
Stateville Speaks was first intended to feature “Voices from Inside,” as its masthead reads. I have been working to reach inside, recruiting my pen pals and their friends to send me their writings. In the winter issue, we ran “The Lost Decades” by Mishunda Brown-Davis, who I first met when I was reporting on a hunger strike she was a part of in Logan prison. She wrote to me in a GTL message, “Hey B! I got a copy of Stateville Speaks last night & I love how you edited my article, making it more presentable. Thank you. I appreciate you.”
My pen pal James Trent at Western CC in Mt. Sterling helped me solicit an article from Clifford Powers, a jailhouse lawyer and friend. “I just read the recent edition of Stateville Speaks,” James wrote me. “It’s really good with fresh perspectives.” He is trying to recruit others, “I’m working on trying to get some Veterans involved to get their perspectives and voices heard. I’ve talked to a few and they are fired up!”
There’s other essays, poetry, artwork, and announcements in this issue. If you’d like a subscription, send a $10 check to: Stateville Speaks Subscription, c/o Justice Studies, LWH 4062, Northeastern IL University, 5500 N. St. Louis Ave., Chicago, IL 60625-4699
I have written what I’m calling an “oral history” of Stateville Speaks that was accepted to the Chicago Reader. Stay tuned for more.
This is the kind of work I’m pursuing in 2023. By supporting my Substack, you’re helping me to get these voices out. This is super satisfying work for me. I hope you are enjoying reading Sentences. Thank you for subscribing!