Humanity for Prisoners

  "Every death in prison is a story left untold, a life unfulfilled." Angela Davis   I was conversing with Heidi Washington, newly appointed Director of the Michigan Department of Corrections. After words of congratulations, I expressed my concern about the way our state treats incarcerated women. She agreed and assured me that there would be improvement.   That was ten years ago. I still haven’t seen it.   There’s only one prison for women. Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility is located in Ypsilanti. My opinion on the way women are treated there was NOT based on hearsay.   1.    I had published an expose by a former MDOC plumber who said he quit because he saw, first hand, how the state treated these women and he couldn’t take it any longer! 2. -  I had shared a group of messages scribbled to us by WHV whistleblowers on napkins and little scraps of paper with the ACLU. That led to an in-prison investigation by the U.S. Departm...

Writer Bankole Thompson’s column in Monday’s Detroit News struck a chord with me.   “ No matter what side you sit on in the war with Iran, the skyrocketing gas prices, which have hit $6 in some parts of the country, are affecting everyone .”   He went on to say that among the hardest hit are those persons living on fixed incomes. That leads me to my discussion today, because I’m guessing that many families of incarcerated men and women may not be on fixed income, but very likely are in the low-to-mid income bracket.   That got me to thinking about prison visits and how seriously gas prices will unquestionably affect visitation. Studies have shown that prison visits not only strengthen family bonds, providing emotional support to inmates, but also aid in the rehabilitation process and reduce recidivism rates.   First, let’s consider the remote locations of some of our prisons.   We have a number of correctional facilities in the Upper Peninsula. For fam...

In November I’ll turn 90! I suppose it’s natural, then, that my thoughts about death increase, along with my age.   Like many of you, I’ve experienced death of loved ones over the years: grandparents, parents, in-laws, a sister, a spouse. But that is not what's on my mind these days. For the past three decades I have been working with men and women who live behind bars. As the founder of HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS it has been my goal to produce an annual memorial service for those persons who died in custody in the previous year. Here in Michigan, that number can range from 130 – 200.   This year that proposed service is finally going to become a reality! An HFP committee is diligently working to make it happen.   As I research the topic and compile materials for such a service, I am especially saddened by the number of men and women who have no family or friends at the time of death. Last year, for example, no one claimed the remains of 32 prisoners. With no fanfare, n...

As a widower who lives alone, I mess around a bit in the kitchen. Frankly, my kids top my cooking abilities, but I assure you that I love good food and I eat well.   One of my favorite TV shows is Diners, Drive-ins and Dives . A recent article about this program pointed out that producer Guy Fieri has been in every state. That led me to dig a little deeper. One of the places he especially liked in Pure Michigan was a joint in Lansing: Eastside Fish Fry & Grill.   It’s not your typical restaurant. When you go to Eastside for chicken or fish, they’ll fry or grill your selection, OR you can take it home to cook yourself.   After visiting Eastside, Guy Fieri concluded: “The prices are fair, the portions are generous, and the flavor is unforgettable!”   But that’s not what caught my attention.   The founder and owner of this unique eatery is Henry Meyer, and he’s an ex-felon! Henry got a second chance to turn over a new leaf, and he now employs and trai...

Do you remember that phrase in U.S. history?   It dates back to May,1844, when Samuel Morse (the man credited with developing the Morse Code) sent a telegram from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, Maryland. The message: “What hath God wrought?” It was the very first long-distance telegraph dispatch. The quote was based on a Biblical phrase in the book of Numbers: “See what God has done.” That milestone is often credited with revolutionizing communication. I’ve been thinking about that phrase all weekend.   It began after I attended, via Zoom, the quarterly meeting of the HUMANINT FOR PRISONERS Board of Directors.   I got to thinking back to the day when this all got started.   As a middle-income white man living in an all-white community, I knew very little about prisons and incarceration. But, my dear friend Maurice Carter, an indigent Black man sitting behind bars for a crime he did not commit, encouraged me to do something. He was convinced that an agency s...

The New York Times is changing my mind.   It’s no secret that I was not pleased when the Michigan Department of Corrections adopted a new mail policy whereby residents of our state prisons could no longer receive original letters and cards from friends and loved ones. Instead, prison staffers would open the mail, photocopy the card or letter, and destroy the original. Later, explaining that the state was dealing with some drug issues, the department extended the policy to include legal mail. And that’s when I complained.   “Constitutional violation,” I cried. “A violation of attorney/client confidentiality!”   Then, last month, I learned of a special report from the New York Times about a nationwide drug problem in prisons. NYT team-members conducted a sweeping investigation that started at the Cook County Jail in Chicago. The conclusion: A means of drug abuse in jails and prisons all around the country now looks an awful lot like office supplies! Reporters Azam Ah...