Writing My Wrongs: Life, Death, and Redemption in an American Prison Quotes

She wrote back two weeks later. She said that she forgave me and encouraged me to seek God's forgiveness, and I took her words to heart. It would be five long years before I reached the point when...

It was an irony that vexed us to no end. In jail and in prison, when a confidential informant makes a statement against an inmate, it's enough to find him or her guilty of any charge. But when we h...

I loved living in the streets. I loved the fast money, fast cars, and fast women. Above all, I loved the reputation I had earned in the 'hood.(2.15)

I had been at Wayne County Jail for six weeks, following my arrest and conviction for second-degree murder. In those six weeks, I had witnessed everything from rape and robbery to murder, and this...

The promise of the Black middle class was eroding as crack and all of its associated vices entrenched themselves deep into the heart of the 'hood. In the sixties and seventies, it was heroin that h...

We packed and cried, and packed and cried, until the crying gave way to laughter and joking. When we were done in the basement, he [Shaka's father] assured me that he would always be there for me n...

On Sundays, when we went to church, my mother told me to pray to Jesus, and he would answer all of my prayers. Sometimes it gave me hope that she would change if I prayed, but she never did.(3.47)

There's a reason why so many inmates use storytelling as a coping tool. Being in prison and stripped of your freedom is painful and degrading, and each day is a fight to maintain your sanity. In or...