Humanity for Prisoners

I have a favorite Christmas Eve story, and I’m going to share it.   Actually, I’ve been sharing it for years.   Back in the 1970s, when I was in the radio business, I had an opportunity to meet and chat with a national UPI reporter whom I greatly respected.   Louis Cassels had been writing commentaries from Washington DC for years, and then he was named National Religion Editor for UPI.   This kind, soft-spoken reporter/writer, who knew how to deliver a punch when he felt it was necessary, chose to write this tender parable one year.   Until the day I left radio broadcasting, I personally read this story to our listeners on Christmas Eve.   I still have the tattered teletype copy, and I invite you to savor the story with me now.   A Christmas Parable by Louis Cassels   "Once upon a time there was a man who looked upon Christmas as a lot of humbug. He wasn’t a Scrooge. He was a kind and decent person, generous to his family, upright in all ...

I’m going to begin by stating that we completely understand the depth of the current drug crisis in Michigan prisons. Having said that, I’m going to add that, in hoping to ease the drug problem the Michigan Department of Corrections has adopted an idea that not only makes no sense, but misses the point. The bigger question, then, is: Who’s to blame for this bad idea? Here’s the new policy in a nutshell, to take effect on January 5. ALL confidential and legal mail sent to prisoners will be photocopied, and the original documents then shredded . The department frames this as a "common sense" measure to curb the flow of synthetic drugs.   Brad Warner, on the HFP staff, testified before a House Appropriations subcommittee the other day. He told state representatives that Michigan is looking at the wrong target.   “The department's justification rests on the claim that legal mail is a primary vector for contraband. However, this narrative collapses under scrutiny. Every...

It’s true! We’re opposed to a new MDOC mail policy.   The Michigan Department of Corrections has announced that it will be implementing this new policy early next year. HUMANITY FOR PRISIONERS has officially expressed opposition to the new rule. Brad Warner, our Intake & Communications Specialist/Special Projects Manager, testified before a house subcommittee in Lansing. Brad speaks with experience and authority. He served 33 years in our state prison system!   I’m sharing space today to give Brad the opportunity to explain.   The Illusion of Safety: Why Shredding Legal Mail Won't Fix the MDOC's Contraband Crisis   The Michigan Department of Corrections has announced a controversial new policy slated for January 5, 2026: All confidential and legal mail sent to incarcerated individuals will be photocopied, and the original documents officially shredded. While the department frames this as a "common sense" measure to curb the flow of synthetic drugs, we mus...

I’m thinking of Shakespeare’s famous quote during the holiday season. In this season of Advent, for example, we are reminded of the prophet Isaiah’s titles as he predicted the coming of a savior: Immanuel, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.   Then, when that savior was born, which we celebrate on December 25, his real first name emerged. Dr. Luke tells us, On the 8 th day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus.   More names and titles came after that: Emmanuel, Christ (the Anointed One), Savior, Lord, Son of God, King of Kings.   In later life though, things changed. When people became aware of that fact that this Jesus was a controversial, no nonsense itinerant preacher, the name-calling wasn’t so pleasant! Even church leaders used words like Blasphemer, False Prophet, Demon Possessed, Wine Bibber!   Let’s face it. Times haven’t changed all that much. We may start out with sweet names for our little babies...

  What's in the brown paper bag?   INTRODUCTION By Doug Tjapkes, Founder, HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS   I’d like to share a beautiful story...a story not written by me.  I feel certain that Luis Ramirez would be honored to have us pass along what he has written, but I can't ask him.  He's dead.   This message came to me from Texas Death Row in the early days of HFP. I was so touched by the experience that I vowed to keep the story alive. We generally re-publish it during the holiday season. May it remind us, again, that the names on death row represent real people. And, that the death penalty is dead wrong!   Anyway, here’s my gift to you today...a story from the late Luiz Ramirez: (In all caps, just the way he sent it)   I CAME HERE IN MAY OF 1999...A TSUNAMI OF EMOTIONS AND THOUGHTS WERE GOING THROUGH MY MIND.  I REMEMBER THE ONLY THINGS IN THE CELL WERE A MATTRESS, PILLOW, A COUPLE SHEETS, A PILLOW CASE, A ROLL OF TOILET PAPER AND A BLANKET....

I’m a news junkie. I admit it. I’m sure it’s a result of writing and broadcasting thousands of newscasts in an earlier life. I listen to local and network newscasts and I still read hard-copy newspapers. Now that I’m in the humanity business in my final career, related topics in the news catch my attention. And that was the case over the weekend.   Thomas Banchoff declared, in a Washington Post column: Mercy is painfully scarce in our politics today. He gave specific examples out of Washington DC---eliminating life-giving aid programs abroad and threatening to withhold food assistance for more than 40 million Americans. In addition, he contended that the administration’s mass deportation program “has been particularly merciless, criminalizing those who once entered the country illegally but have long been law-abiding and productive members of our communities.”   In another powerful column, this one in the Lost Angeles Times, Noubar Afeyan, coined a new but appropriate word...