San Quentin News

WRITTEN BY INMATES – ADVANCING SOCIAL JUSTICE Award Winner VOL. 2017 NO. 2 February 2017 SAN QUENTIN, CALIFORNIA 94964 www.sanquentinnews.com POPULATION 3,867 Celebrating Black history month

Courtesy of The National Baseball Hall of Fame Arthur “Rube” Foster By Marcus Henderson Journalism Guild Chairman

Arthur “Rube” Foster holds an honored place in Black sports history, but most people know nothing about him.

“He was a shrewd, deter- Photos by Jonathan Mumm, Television Specialist, CIW mined businessman with supe- rior organization skills,” wrote CIW graduates proudly display their certificates and the pink hard hats they received with their industry-accredited certification William C. Rhoden, author of a book titled Forty Million Dollar Slaves. CIW accredits 25 CTE graduates See Black History on Page 10 By Allie Powell leaders, staff, family members, and fellow the keynote address and emphasized the CDCR Public Information Officer, inmates. On this December afternoon, importance of programming and successful New CDCR and Michele Kane, Chief of External these women are looked at, not as inmates rehabilitation. “I wish the public could see Affairs, CALPIA inside the California Institution for Women the faces of the offenders and the staff as (CIW), but graduates who are bettering they celebrate this achievement. This is regulations Twenty-five female inmates beam with themselves for their future. what rehabilitation is all about.” pride as they entered the auditorium to a Scott Kernan, CDCR Secretary and Chair proposal thunderous round of applause from prison of the Prison Industry Board, delivered See CIW on Page 4 These regulations have not been certified for emergency adoption by the Office of Administrative Law yet and SQ artists on display therefore haven’t been noticed to the public for public comment at the Smithsonian yet. They are posted by OAL for 10 days and the public may By Rahsaan Thomas to be proud of,” said Noah challenge the necessity for the Staff Writer Wright, one of the four incar- emergency adoption but not the cerated designers of the Gen- details of the proposed changes A group of incarcerated men esis Project. “Sitting in here, themselves. The public comment with no architectural experi- you don’t expect that people period has not opened yet ence, created design ideas for want to hear what you have because the regulations are not a better America that were dis- to say. It’s a new and exciting in emergency effect. Emergency played in a museum overlook- feeling.” Photo by Eddie Herena– San Quentin News adoption is different from regular ing New York’s Central Park. Rafael Cuevas (center) speaks about getting the “It’s surreal. It’s something See Smithsonian on Page 4 rulemaking which seeks public right people to teach rehabilitative programs comment before the regulations are certified for adoption. CDCR will post them on San Quentin News hosts its website after (and if) OAL approves them for temporary emergency adoption. OAL may nationwide DA forum require changes to the regulation By Juan Haines prison, said Baltimore, MD, text as a condition of emergency Senior Editor State’s Attorney Marilyn approval. Mosby. “At some point, the San Francisco District Attor- prisoners are transitioning TEXT OF PROPOSED ney George Gascón, joined by back to society. There needs to REGULATIONS more than two dozen prosecu- be reentry services.” tors from around the country, San Francisco Deputy In the following, underline visited San Quentin to discuss District Attorney Marisa indicates additional text, criminal justice policy with 30 Rodriguez told the other and strikethrough indicates inmates participating in restor- prosecutors, “One of the things deleted text. ative justice programs. to take away is be courageous. Courtesy of Deanna Van Buren- “Our job does not end when See Proposal on Page 5 Deanna Van Buren at the SQ display in the Smithsonian the person we convict goes to See DA Forum on Page 20 Page 2 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Inside Edition #89 CIW accredits 25 CTE 1 President’s nominee 8 Celebrating Black history 1 CoreCivic claims success 8 New CDCR regulations 1 Inmate’s path back 9 SQ artists on display 1 Valentine’s Day 9 SQ News host nationwide 1 Celebrating 10–11 Newsbriefs 2 From Around The World 12 Radio journalist wins 3 Arts & Entertainment 12–13 Criminal justice advocates 3 Estudio examina como 14 Securus stalls efforts 3 Origen del dia del amor 14 Calif. bail system 3 El “Proyect Rebound” 14 CDCR’s new detection 3 PUP’s big open-mic 15 Gov. Brown veto of SB 4 Kwanzaa celebration 15 SQ inmates experience 5 Book Review 16 Youth offenders face 5 Alliance for Change grads 16 Editorial 6 Asked On The Line 16 Letters to the Editor 6 Veterans and Shakespeare 17 Parole grant skewed 6 Study explores lifers 17 Kid CAT Speaks 7 Sports 18 Cycle of incarceration trap 8 Sports 19

Printing and distribution of the San Quentin News is supported solely by donations and grants from the outside community. To make a dropouts to improve their Correction of conceal the maker, donation please visit our website at: News Briefs lives. The program began in seller and other information sanquentinnews.com or send your 1978 in New York City’s East about capital punishment drugs. tax-deductible check or money order to: 1. Eloy, Arizona — The Harlem. It has now grown to 9. Alabama — Lynneice Friends of San Quentin News inmates at La Palma 250 programs around the U.S. Washington will be the first P.O. Box 494, San Correctional Facility painted and more than 80 programs in district attorney in Jefferson Quentin, CA 94964 the four walls of a multipurpose 21 other countries. Participants County who is not a white man. Under the check memo section, please room in memory of their work toward their high school When she takes office next write “Friends of San Quentin News” California homes Cronkite News diplomas or equivalency month, Washington will be the Thank you for your support. reports. The inmates, who were while learning job skills by first Black woman serving as a transferred to Arizona as part of building affordable housing, district attorney in the history Prisoners United in the Craft of Journalism a contract with the California performing community service of the state. She will also join and participating in leadership a very small club nationwide: in collaboration with students from the prison system, are in a drug and alcohol treatment program. training, SF Gates report. Ninety-five percent of elected The private prison is operated 5. Connecticut —Democrat prosecutors are White and just by Corrections Corporation Gov. Dannel Malloy has reduced 1 percent are women of color, of America, which recently the state’s inmate population to according to a report released rebranded as CoreCivic. a 20-year low as rates of violent last summer by the Reflective 2. Milwaukee, Wis. — The crime are falling, according to Democracy Campaign. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY Huffington Post reported The Crime Report. 10. Atmore, Ala. — Ronald Graduate School of Journalism that four people have died in 6. Pennsylvania — According Bert Smith Jr., 45, was executed custody in county jail since last to PennLive.com, the prison on Dec. 8. Smith killed a store April, including two inmates officials ended the “food clerk more than two decades with medical emergencies, a loaf” policy in an effort to ago. Thirteen minutes into the man with mental-health issues “humanize” how the most execution two consciousness who succumbed to “profound dangerous and quarrelsome tests were conducted as Smith dehydration” and a baby who prisoners are treated, the heaved and coughed, The We Want To Hear San Quentin News died following the ignored department’s executive deputy Associated Press reports. From You! Current and past copies of the San repeated requests of a detained secretary, Shirley Moore Smeal, The AP article quoted, “In a Quentin News are posted online at: said. The loaves, made of rice, consciousness test, a prison The San Quentin News (www.sanquentinnews.com) pregnant woman in labor. Based encourages inmates, free staff, (www.flickr.com/photos/ on an independent investigation, raw potatoes, carrots, cabbage, officer says the inmate’s name, custody staff, volunteers and sanquentinnews) the deaths were likely caused and oatmeal, were replaced by brushes his eyelashes and then others outside the institution to Permission is granted to reprint articles by delays in access to care, a more nutritionally balanced pinches his left arm. During appearing in the San Quentin News submit articles. All submissions personnel shortages and a lack meal delivered in a paper bag to the first one, Smith moved become property of the provided credit is given to the author San Quentin News. and this publication, except for articles of staff oversight. inmates deemed deserving of a his arm. He slightly raised his Please use the following criteria reprinted herein from other publications. 3. Illinois — Illinois has been “behavior-modifying meal.” right arm again after the second when submitting: San Quentin News Staff selected for participation in 7. Pennsylvania — A recent consciousness test.” • Limit your articles to no more the National Criminal Justice report from a criminal justice 11. Jackson, Ga. — William than 350 words. Editor-in-Chief ...... Richard Richardson Reform Project (NCJRP). reform group said Pennsylvania Sallie was put to death on Dec. • Know that articles will be edited Executive Editor ...... Arnulfo T. Garcia for content and length. Senior Editor ...... Juan Haines NCJRP offers technical should stop automatically 6. Sallie killed his father-in- • The newspaper is not a medium Associate Editor ...... Kevin D. Sawyer assistance in planning and suspending driver’s licenses law, shooting and wounding his to file grievances. (For that, use Managing Editor ...... Wayne Boatwright implementing data-driven, for drug convictions not related mother-in-law and abducting the prison appeals process.) We Journalism Guild Chairman ...... evidence-based practices in to driving. The report by the and sexually assaulting his encourage submitting articles that ...... Marcus Henderson are newsworthy and encompass pretrial reform, re-entry and Prison Policy Initiative focuses wife and her sister, the Atlanta Staff Writer ...... Rahsaan Thomas issues that will have an impact on offender recidivism, mental on the 12 states, including Journal Constitution reports. Staff Writer ...... Davontae T. Pariani the prison populace. Pennsylvania and Washington Georgia executed five people Staff Writer ...... Emile DeWeaver health and substance abuse, • Please do not use offensive Staff Writer ...... Wesley Eisiminger reducing incarceration, and D.C., that automatically in 2015 and led the nation in language in your submissions. suspend driver’s licenses for all executions last year with nine. • Poems and artwork (cartoons Staff Writer ...... David Le information sharing. The state and drawings) are welcomed. Staff Writer ...... Samuel Hearnes was one of three states selected drug convictions. These laws Texas was second, with seven • Letters to the editor should be Photographer ...... Eddie Herena for participation from more than make it harder for those with executions. short and to the point. Layout Designer ...... Keung Vanh 20 applicants across the country. such convictions to access jobs, 12. USA — While the Send Submissions to: Layout Designer ...... Jonathan Chiu 4. Somerville, Mass. — John the report said. The report noted incarceration rates in federal Researcher ...... Richard Lindsey San Quentin News Valverde, 47, spent 16 years in that only Virginia, Michigan, prisons, state jails and state 1 Main Street Administrative Review prison for killing a man accused Florida and New Jersey suspend prisons fell by more than 8 San Quentin, CA 94964 Warden’s Office ...... Lt. S. Robinson of raping his girlfriend, SF more licenses annually than percent from 2010 to 2015, ...... Sgt. Chris Siino For inmates that want to receive Gate reports. While in prison, Pennsylvania. violent and property crimes CDCR Information Officer II (Supervisor) ... a copy of the San Quentin News Valverde earned two college 8. Arkansas — The state’s have dropped at even higher in the mail, send $1.61 worth of ...... Krissi Khokhobashvili stamps for postage to the above Adviser ...... Linda Xiques degrees and taught fellow lethal injection supply of levels — a combined 14.6 address. Adviser ...... William Drummond inmates how to read and write. potassium chloride is set to percent. A study released by the Adviser ...... Joan Lisetor run out. The state has not had Pew Charitable Trusts showed The process can be repeated He also worked as an HIV/ Adviser...... Steve McNamara every month if you want to AIDS counselor. Valverde is an execution since 2005 as that the 10 states with the largest Adviser ...... John C. Eagan receive the latest newspaper. the new chief executive of its 35 Death Row inmates are declines in imprisonment Adviser ...... Jon Spurlock waiting for the state Supreme during that time span, including Behind the Scenes Adviser ...... Jan Perry YouthBuild USA Inc. It is an organization with a worldwide Court to decide on the legality California, Texas and New The San Quentin News is printed Adviser ...... Nikki Meredith by Marin Sun Printing, San Rafael, Adviser ...... Yukari Kane set of programs aimed at of the state’s secrecy law, which Jersey, saw crime fall an average with donations from supporters. Spanish Coordinator ...... Lucia de la Fuente helping young, low-income requires the Department of of 14.4 percent. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 3 Radio journalist wins Criminal justice Bay Area award advocates seeking By Juan Haines the story to be released. Part of Senior Editor that was because of rape alle- bail system reform gations being made by one of A state prisoner’s feature the participants in the story, By Forrest Lee Jones heinous crime, you can make story won a prestigious jour- which had to be investigated Journalism Guild Writer bail,” California Chief Justice nalism award after beating out by CDCR (California Depart- Tani Cantil-Sakauye said in over 200 entries from more ment of Corrections and Reha- Criminal justice advocates a March 2016 editorial board than 100 professionals repre- bilitation).” are seeking to reform the meeting with the Sacramento senting 29 media organizations Scott said winning the award California bail system reports Bee. in the San Francisco Bay Area. reinforces the work that he and online journalist Steven Their lives becomes disen- The broadcast story titled his fellow incarcerated jour- Greenhaut. franchised if they are incarcer- Lady Jay Talks About Being nalists do in bringing socially Opponents say the system ated and not working, result- Transgender in Prison won the responsible and newsworthy forces poor people to plea ing in losing their possessions 2016 San Francisco Peninsula discussions beyond prison bargain their cases to avoid and housing. Moreover, they Press Club award for Overall walls to the outside world. spending months in jail and lose custody of their children Excellence. It aired on radio “Society needs to know that a slow judicial process but to Child Protective Services. station KALW 91.7 FM late every individual has a story allows wealthy defendants to This is a problem for 60 per- last year. and that we are not defined by be free pending trial. cent of people incarcerated in “I thought it would be an in- our last bad act,” Scott said. Photo by Greg Eskridge Greenhaut reported last California jails, who have not teresting topic — a transgender “There’s a slew of information Louis A. Scott November on reason.com that yet been sentenced, said the inside of a male facility,” said behind these prison walls that bills will be introduced in the report. the story’s reporter, San Quen- could be most helpful in solv- “Some equate being denied pa- next California Legislature A study done by nonpartisan tin prisoner Louis A. Scott. ing some of the most difficult role to losing a family member, session to reform the bail Public Policy Institute shows: “It’s about the discrimination social issues. If doing these which is one of the most dif- system. “From 2000 to 2009...The me- that an individual goes through kinds of stories addresses ficult things to deal with while The stated purpose of bail is dian bail amount in California on a daily basis — what most some of those problems, then I incarcerated — that of being to ensure the appearance of a ($50,000) is more than five of us take for granted is a con- can honestly say that I’m proud permitted closure when a fam- defendant in court. times the median amount in stant struggle for a transgender of being a reporter.” ily member dies.” Proponents of the system the rest of the nation (less than inside prison. Something as Scott is currently interview- Scott said being incarcerated say the system works well. $10,000).” simple as getting a shower or ing inmates who appear before is an important element for “When it comes to guaran- The U.S. Justice Department being subjected to torment and the parole board but are not reporting on prisons and their teeing appearance at court, found in Georgia that bail ridicule because of one’s desire found suitable for release. He conditions. surety bail outperforms every practices “incarcerate indigent to be who they truly are.” said he wanted to know how “The reality of the situation form of public sector pretrial individuals before trial solely Getting the story out to the they cope with the denial. is that no one can provide a release and own recognizance because of their inability to public had its challenges, Scott “There is no availabil- better perception than those release as well,” according to pay for their release.” That said. ity for mental health services of us who are incarcerated,” the American Bail Coalition. violates the 14th Amendment “It took me 18 months for for those denied” Scott said. Scott said. “As a journalist, Opponents points out some of the U.S. Constitution, the I am committed to show the of the problems. “Over time department reported. better side of those who are in- the discussion about bail [has Greenhaut was the Union- carcerated. There is not a day become]: Does it really serve Tribune’s California colum- Securus stalls efforts that I do not witness rehabilita- its purpose of keeping peo- nist. He is western region di- tion and transformation within ple safe? Because if you’re rector for the R Street Institute to reduce inmate these walls.” wealthy and you commit a and is based in Sacramento. telephone rates Calif. bail system disproportionately By Kevin D. Sawyer implement a $0.21 per minute Associate Editor cap on interstate calls, accord- affects the poor and minorities ing to Ars Technica. But the re- Regulatory efforts to reduce sult has been an increase on (in- By David Le A bail industry representa- munity members of the hearing the price of in-state telephone state) calls.” Staff Writer tive said that their services pro- said that the bail system works calls made by inmates were Securus has already gained a vide public safety and “enhance to keep low-income people in stalled by Securus Technolo- reputation for hardnosed deals California’s bail system dis- racial justice” in a hearing held jail and negatively impacts peo- gies, Inc. regarding the video calling ser- proportionately affects low- by the Assembly Select Com- ple of color, the CJCJ wrote. The Federal Communications vice offered in correctional fa- income people and people mittee on the Status of Boys According to the CJCJ, the Commission’s (FCC) attempt cilities across the country with of color, and needs to be re- and Men of Color to reform the bail system is used as lever- to cap the rates at no more than the condition that these lockup formed, the Center on Juvenile California’s bail system. age to force defendants to take $0.31 per minute was stayed by facilities get rid of face-to-face and Criminal Justice (CJCJ) re- Contrary to the bail indus- plea deals resulting in jail over- the Court of Appeals for the Dis- visiting. ported. try’s claim, panelists and com- crowding by holding people trict of Columbia Circuit after “While families may be grow- who are not a public safety risk Securus filed a petition. ing frustrated with the increas- but cannot afford bail. “A lack of regulation or price ing expenses, there is little in- There are courts that have caps allows companies like Se- centive for local governments CDCR’s new detection pre-trial diversion programs curus, Global Tel*Link and oth- to intervene on their behalf,” RT that allow people the opportu- ers to charge whatever rates they America reported, explaining system clamps down nity to return to their homes, and the (county jails) in which that some county facilities re- jobs and families while await- they operate choose,” the Inter- ceive millions of dollars in com- ing trial. Some diversion pro- national Business Times report- missions from the providers of on cell phones grams even offer high-risk ed in the online publication RT inmate calling services. people the same opportunity if America. “As a result, the cost Last year, Securus CEO Rick By Noel Scott according to an article on the they agreed to be monitored, of a 15-minute conversation can Smith, told the Times that the Journalism Guild Writer website WeAreWVProud.com. the CJCJ noted. cost over $15.” increasing rates for in-state calls “We are delighted CDCR has Beyond cost, the risk assess- According to the Times, the are due to the FCC’s not ban- Two hundred and seventy- selected Metrasens as a partner ment process also fills the jails. FCC made several attempts to ning commissions to sheriff and two Cellsense Plus detection in the fight against contraband,” For example, the common use reduce the costs of in-state calls prison officials. systems will be provided to the said Jim Viscardi, vice president of the Public Safety Assess- in 2016. The agency wanted to “The lower rates that were California Department of Cor- of Metrasens’ security division, ment tool (PSA), created by the place a cap on the price of calls highly publicized never went rections and Rehabilitation by the article quoted. Arnold Foundation, considers from $0.11 to $0.22 per min- into effect because the FCC Metrasens and Global Tel*Link The Cellsense Plus is the only negative factors such as ute on both interstate and in- failed to do their job and tried in an effort to rid state prisons of most versatile detention tool in pending charges, previous in- state calls from prisons. Global to set rates below our cost,” said inmate-owned cell phones. the industry for screening staff, carceration, and failure to ap- Tel*Link, the industry leader in Smith. “There are no rate caps The Cellsense Plus by visitors, vendors, laundry, mail, pear to calculate an individual’s providing inmate calling ser- on (in-state) and local calls, only Metrasens claims to be the most inmates and their property, the risk, the CJCJ reported. vices, blocked that attempt, fol- on interstate calls. I understand durable and effective tool in article stated. Calling for bail reform, the lowed by Securus filing for a that inmates and families are up- locating cell-phones, whether on The tool can be used anywhere CJCJ said “California bail re- stay in the regulations, pending set that rates didn’t decrease, it’s or off, inside or outside the body. inside a correctional facility. form advocates and policymak- a lawsuit against the FCC. the FCC’s fault.” The system can also be used Metrasens is a company that ers should support legislation “That isn’t to say that the FCC According to the Times, Secu- freestanding or mounted and is develops and applies advanced that requires all counties to has accomplished nothing in rus Technologies is reported to capable of finding the smallest magnetic detection technologies establish and implement evi- their battle,” according to RT have made $531 million in gross of contraband items like razor in healthcare and security dence-based and data-driven America. “They did manage to revenue in 2015. blades, paper clips or staples, markets. pre-trial diversion programs.” Page 4 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Gov. Brown veto of SB 1157 allows jails to ban visits By Kevin D. Sawyer fact that while the governor ex- According to the Post, Cali- other through a video screen.” visitation as a replacement for in- Associate Editor pressed concern about the lack fornia has at least 18 counties If there is an equipment fail- person visitation in California is of in-person visits with family that “severely restrict” in- ure, they are unable to see their part of a nationwide trend,” the Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed negatively impacting rehabilita- person visits, have eliminated loved ones at all. group said. a bill that would have prohibited tive goals, he fell woefully short them, or plan to eliminate them “This is horrible news for In 2014, a federal Depart- exclusive use of video visits at of protecting a basic human in some jails. Because SB 1157 families of incarcerated people,” ment of Justice study found that local correctional facilities. right.” was vetoed, family and friends said Mike Cortez, according to maintaining contact with fam- Brown said in his September “My heart is so heavy right of incarcerated children, wom- the Post. “We’re human beings. ily through in-person visits is veto message of SB 1157 that he now,” said Zoevina Pariani-Del- en and men will have to pay for We need to have a connection one of the essentials to reduce is concerned by the recent trend gado, The Oakland Post report- video calls from home or travel with our family members.” recidivism and increase the pos- in cutting back in-person jail ed. She said when incarcerated, to county lockups and visit by A 2015 report by Prison sibility of successful re-entry to visits. But he said the bill lacks she received in-person visits video. Policy Initiative stated 74 society. flexibility and provides a strict from family members. “Visita- “Both the visitor and the in- percent of the county jails in the Brown said, “I am directing ban on video visits. tion had such a big impact on carcerated person are in the United States that adopt video the Board of State and Commu- Sen. Holly J. Mitchell, D- my re-entry and on my family. same building,” the Post re- visitation technology eventually nity Corrections to work with Los Angeles, who authored the Real visits allowed me to stay ported. “But instead or having a eliminate in-person visits. stakeholders to explore ways to bill said, “I’m saddened by the connected with my children.” real visit, they can only see each “The increased use of video address these issues.”

Dawn Davison, who came out passing out the certificates with programs is CALPIA partners Whittier, said she is waiting for CIW of retirement in August 2016, to Secretary Kernan. with the trade unions and re- the prospective apprentices with help smooth a transitional peri- leased offenders are eligible for open arms. “The will of the spirit Continued from Page 1 od for the institution. A former placement in full-scale appren- to overcome — that’s something Warden at CIW, Davison was “It was challenging ticeship programs. CALPIA pro- wonderful to witness.” The women are being rec- hugely popular among staff and vides those graduates with a full Dawn Osborne, a Pre- ognized after participating in inmates for seven years due to and to know that set of tools and pays their first Apprentice Carpentry graduate, the California Prison Industry the reforms she put in place be- year of union dues. Offenders in has twenty-two days left to go on Authority’s (CALPIA’s) Pre- fore retiring in 2009. we can do it is a the Healthcare Facilities Main- her sentence and is excited about Apprentice Carpentry, Pre-Ap- Davison praised the graduates beautiful thing.” tenance program train for 3-6 her future and transformation. prentice Construction Labor or and talked about their futures. months and are eligible to take “I had no clue that I would even Healthcare Facilities Mainte- “You ladies made a choice to state employment exams upon be interested in something like nance programs. One-by-one, do the right thing. You came to The Pre-Apprentice Carpentry parole to apply for state jobs such this. I came from a home that they are called to the stage ac- work every day. And that took a and Pre-Apprentice Construc- as maintenance technicians. was very broken. I dropped out cepting their industry-accredit- lot of fortitude.” tion Labor graduates are part CALPIA also invited repre- of school. Coming to prison I’ve ed certifications and a pink hard Davison was also joined on of CALPIA’s Career Technical sentatives from their respective done a lot of productive things hat, the audience cheering for stage by Chief Deputy Warden Education programs which have trade unions to network with the with my time. I’ve accomplished every woman as loudly as the Molly Hill who on Jan. 1, 2017, some of lowest recidivism rates newly certified trainees after the my GED and I’ve been drug-free. last. accepted CIW’s acting War- in the country, with a cumulative ceremony. It was challenging and to know The encouraging atmosphere den position. Davison and Hill rate of 7.13%. Lissette Cruz, representing the that we can do it is a beautiful resonated with acting Warden congratulated the women while What is unique about these Carpenter’s Training Center in thing.”

architects Pryce Jones and Zoey Smithsonian Parsigian also helped with the workshop. Continued from Page 1 “Nobody was talking to incarcerated people, and they The Smithsonian’s Cooper stand the most to gain in the Hewitt Museum exhibit changes,” said Van Buren. displayed more than 60 design “Slaves built the pyramids, slaves ideas about building a better built the Taj Mahal, and slaves society. The exhibit, called built the White House. When we “By the People: Designing a go to build an equitable society, Better America,” included the the people who are going to use it contribution of three teams of should have a say in the design.” men incarcerated at San Quentin. Richard Zorns, Chris One, Project Genesis, envi- Marshall, Tommy Ross and sions a community where ev- Michael Williams designed eryone has something at stake A New World, another model and the motto, “Do good and displayed. you will receive good in return.” A New World seeks to make Members start living there in a Restorative Justice an experience tent and then build tailor-made positively reinforced wherever homes with the aid of the com- you turn. It is filled with munity. reminders of Restorative Justice The other three Project Gene- concepts, like video screens of sis designers are Chanthon Bun, people reciting, “Violence is not Vaughn Miles and Omid Mokri. the solution to any problem.” Daeanna Van Buren spear- “Restorative Justice is an headed getting prisoners’ restor- experience,” said Zorns. “If you Courtesy of Deanna Van Buren ative space ideas included at the give it the opportunity, it can Project Genesis project created by SQ inmates Smithsonian. She took time out bloom, blossom and become from her own practice, Design- something. I would like to see an incarcerated person is. They ing Justice, Designing Spaces, it built. I think it would bring want to see the whole person. and held a workshop inside San communities together.” I think our project taps into Quentin teaching how to design The Restorative Justice empathy and makes people see restorative spaces. Design Group was created in a different way.” “If I’m designing a building, by Gary Harrell, Manuel “These were like thesis it’s not for me; it’s for the people,” Murillo, Orlando Harris, Chris projects,” said Alwan. “They said Van Buren. “It’s a place for Christensen and Mark Stanley. were comprehensive approaches you, so I have to do it with you. They envision a community to address why people land in I’m not going to interview you; designed to foster healing for prison. One had a drug treatment I’m going to show you how to people who caused harm, the center for families.” design and you build the model.” people harmed, their families The workshop started with Van Buren made a security- and the community. It features five teams of which the three friendly tool kit that prisons circular living spaces and an design models were chosen. allow her to bring inside for open atmosphere. “I was worried they were only incarcerated people to make “We created an atmosphere gonna pick one,” said Van Buren. models. that was open so they (people) “The fact that they choose more When the Smithsonian called would feel nature and a is a testament to the quality of Courtesy of Deanna Van Buren on her to submit her students’ connection to the area,” said the work.” Visitors looking at the display on opening night at the work, she teamed up with Harrell. Ho added, “I love that this Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum Inside Prison Project’s Karena Van Buren added, “The project is a reflection of people Montag and Williams James reaction: People were really who have been incarcerated that was expressed through 26 at the Cooper Hewitt, Association’s Duya Alwan to inspired; they were moved by themselves, instead of just this project was incredibly Smithsonian Design Museum, call on incarcerated men for it. I think people are ready to be academics and politicians. The inspiring.” 2 East 91st St., Manhattan; 212- the project. Artist Amy Ho, dispelled of the myths of who amount of creativity and talent The exhibit runs until Feb. 849-2950; cooperhewitt.org. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 5 SQ inmates experience a spiritual journey to Mecca By Marcus Henderson “Seeing the Hajj for some- Imam H.Q. Hussein, the you. Yes, here I am.” intimate relations with your Journalism Guild Chairman one like me inspired an over- Islamic chaplain, and guest The desert heat and the pa- wife once you are in Ihram whelming desire to complete volunteer Mustafa Oscar Pena tience one must exhibit while (pilgrim garb). The San Quentin Muslim that momentous task,” said shared the experiences of their being among a large crowd of “The presentation actually community was treated to a Abd Allah Mustafaa. “Know- Hajj and used the slides to people takes a lot of fortitude, put you there,” said Jihad Mu- slide show of the trials and ing that one who completes the point out sacred sites. Pena stated. He added, “This hammad-Bey. “It helps you put benefits of the spiritual jour- obligation solely for the plea- Chaplain Imam Hussein is relevant because Hajj puts in perspective the books you ney to Mecca, in Saudi Ara- sure of Allah, all his/her pre- passed around two pieces of you in harmony with the rest read on Hajj.” bia, that millions of pilgrims vious sin would be forgiven, unstitched white wraps called of the world. It teaches you not The end of Hajj is marked by throughout the world take. The demonstrates God’s awesome an Ihram (pilgrim garb) to the to complain and to appreciate a special prayer and a celebra- pilgrimage, known as Hajj, is mercy.” audience. He demonstrated the God’s gifts. tion of the Islamic year. It com- to visit the Holy Mosque (the Hajj is the fifth principle proper way to wrap the items, “If we’ve done wrong, we memorates Prophet Abraham’s House of God). of the Islamic faith. Hajj one covering his body from his need to seek forgiveness and willingness to sacrifice his son The pictures showed acts of comes from the traditions of neck to his waist and the other don’t think anything is insig- Ishmael. worship performed at Mec- Abraham, the father of the from his waist to his feet. He nificant because that could be “It’s in our oral history to ca such as the seven circles monotheist faiths. The House explained how this is to be the thing holding you back pass down our benefits and around the Ka’ba (the squared was built by Abraham and his done before entering Mecca from getting your blessings.” mistakes,” said Pena. “To give house, known as The House) son Ishmael. According to the and once there when you begin The men were instructed on the men a firsthand look of the and the running back and forth principle, those who have the to chant. cutting or shaving their heads environment in Mecca and the through the hills of Safa and means must perform a Hajj at “Yes, here I am O’Lord, here for the trip, not wearing or us- rituals to be performed helps Marwa. least once in his/her lifetime. I am. There is no partner for ing hygiene products and no them to get prepared now.” Youth offenders face possible deportation by Trump By John Lam zen, but there is no way I am not tence. The Southeast Asia Resource “But immigration law is sepa- Journalism Guild Writer an American,” Khoy added in In 2004 he was arrested at a Action Center (SARAC) states rate from criminal law, and my the Nov. 24 op-ed. probation office by an officer that people facing deportation to record still exists. Even though Children who immigrated “I arrived in the United States from Immigration and Customs Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam the state has forgiven my crime, to America and later acquired on Nov. 12, 1981, when I was Enforcement (ICE). often share similar experiences the federal government could a criminal record will likely 1. My parents fled the Pol Pot as refugee children. Around 65 to still decide to deport me. be deported under Donald J. genocide in Cambodia, in which 85 percent of deportation orders “I implore Mr. Trump and his Trump’s administration, a po- over two million people were “I am not an to these countries are because of supporters to look past my mis- tential deportee says. murdered. I was born in a refu- old criminal convictions. takes. I’ve lived my entire life: as “We are getting them out of gee camp in Thailand before American citizen, “If I was deported, I would an American.” our country or we are going to moving to California.” but there is no be sent to Cambodia. But I had According to SARAC, “Be- incarcerate,” Trump has said. His brother and sister, who never even been to Cambodia!” cause of unusual repatriation His administration will “get were born here, are citizens. way I am not Khoy added. agreements between the U.S. the people that are criminal and Khoy described the three of After being held for nine and Cambodia, Laos and Viet- have criminal records, gang them as typical American kids; an American” months in detention, Khoy was nam, thousands of people re- members, drug dealers... proba- eating Cheerios, going to Dis- released under supervision. main in the U.S. for years or bly two million, it could be even neyland and watching the Fourth He was told his conviction “I returned once again to even decades with final orders three million (people).” of July fireworks. meant he would most likely be college and started working at of removal, never knowing when Concern is expressed in a “In the spring of 2000 ... I deported. a university as an enrollment they might be deported.” New York Times op-ed by Lun- was carrying seven tablets of “For me this was a second pun- counselor. I married and had a For more information regard- dy Khoy, an immigrant. “I’m Ecstasy (when) I was arrested ishment for the very same crime, son,” Khoy said. ing criminal deportation, write not a gang member. I’m not a for possession with intent to sell, and this one, though never dis- Last year he received a pardon to: Southeast Asia Resource Ac- drug dealer. But I have a crimi- which is a felony in Virginia.” cussed or even mentioned three from the governor of Virginia tion Center, 1628 16th St. NW, nal record and I’m afraid. Khoy pleaded guilty, and was years earlier when I pleaded that mentioned his “commitment Washington, D.C. 20009 or call “I am not an American citi- given a four-year suspended sen- guilty, was worse than the first.” to good citizenship.” (202) 601-2968.

Restitution Centers, Community Subsection 3375.2(a)(8) is section 3000 when all of the fol- imposed which would preclude Proposal Correctional Facilities, Drug amended to read: lowing criteria are met for the secure Level I placement. Where Treatment Furlough, halfway (8) An inmate serving a life inmate: determined eligible for place- Continued from Page 1 back facilities, Community term with the possibility of pa- Subsections 3375.2(a)(10)(A) ment, the mandatory minimum Reentry Programs, etc.); and role shall not be housed in a Lev- through 3375.2(a)(10)(I) are score factor for “other life term” California Code of Regu- comparable facilities in another el I non-secure facility as defined adopted to read: shall be removed/not imposed. lations, Title 15, Division 3, law enforcement jurisdiction in section 3000 nor assigned to (A) Preliminary score of 18 or Subsection 3375.2(a)(9) is re- Adult Institutions, Programs, (i.e. county road camps, county a program outside a security pe- less. numbered to 3375.2(a)(11): and Parole detoxification center, etc.) rimeter unless the exceptional (B) Their most recent parole (11) An inmate serving a life Chapter 1. Rules and Regu- Secure Level I facility is a criteria specified within this sub- consideration hearing resulted in term whose placement score is lations of Adult Operations Level I facility with a secure section has been met. Exceptions no more than a three year denial not consistent with a Level I or II and Programs perimeter as defined in section may only occur when Board of by the BPH. security level shall not be housed Article 1. Behavior 3000 that includes razor wire to Parole Hearings (BPH) grants (C) Their most recent Compre- in a Level I or Level II facility 3000. Definitions. prevent the escape of inmates. parole, the release date is within hensive Risk Assessment, com- except when approved by the De- Section 3000 is amended to Totally disabled means a di- 3 years, and the Governor’s Of- pleted by a licensed psychologist partmental Review Board. alphabetically merge the defi- agnosis provided by a physician fice has completed its review and employed by the BPH, identifies Subsection 3375.2(a)(11) is nition below with those already and/or psychiatrist indicating either formally approved parole the inmate’s potential risk for fu- renumbered to 3375.2(a)(13) in the regulations. that an inmate is incapable of or taken no action. When all ture violence as low or moderate, and amended to read: Classification Staff Represen- performing an assignment. three conditions are met and the or they have been granted parole (13) An inmate with a case tative (CSR) means a depart- 3375.2 Administrative inmate is otherwise eligible for by the BPH. factor described in sections mental employee designated Determinants. a custody reduction, the inmate (D) Does not have a VIO ad- 3377.2(b)(2)(A), 3377.2(b)(2)(B) to represent the Director in the Subsections 3375.2(a) shall be evaluated by an ICC for ministrative determinant cur- or 3377.2(b)(2)(C), shall be ineli- classification process during the through 3375.2(a)(5) are un- the custody reduction. rently imposed. gible for minimum custody. An review, approval, or deferral of changed but shown as refer- Subsection 3375.2(a)(9) is (E) Not identified as a Public inmate with a history of one or actions by institution classifica- ence. renumbered to 3375.2(a)(11) Interest Case as defined in sec- more walkaways from nonsecure tion committees, including but Subsection 3375.2(a)(6) is New Subsection 3375.2(a)(9) tion 3000. settings, not to include Drug not limited to inmate transfers, amended to read: is adopted to read: (F) Does not have an “R” Suf- Treatment Furlough, and Com- inmate special housing program (6) An inmate serving a sen- (9) An inmate serving a life fix imposed. munity Correctional Reentry placements/retention, and cus- tence of life without possibility term with the possibility of pa- (G) Does not have a history of Centers, and Community Reen- tody designations. Any Cor- of parole (LWOP) shall not be role shall be housed in a facil- escape or attempted escape with try Programs, shall not be placed rectional Counselor III may be housed in a facility with a se- ity with a security level of II or force from any correctional set- in minimum custody settings for designated to perform the duties curity level lower than Level III higher unless the exceptional ting or armed escort, escape or at least 10 years following the lat- of a CSR. II, except when authorized by criteria specified within subsec- attempted escape from a cor- est walkaway. Lethal electrified fence is a the Departmental Review Board tions 3375.2(a)(8) or 3375.2(a)(10) rectional setting with a secure Editor’s Note: high voltage fence installed for (DRB). Additionally, an LWOP through 3375.2(a)(10)(I) have perimeter as defined in section These are not the proposed the lethal infliction of injury to inmate housed within a general been met. 3000, and plotting or planning to regulations in their entirety. escaping inmates. population facility with a secu- Subsection 3375.2(a)(10) is escape from a correctional set- This leaves out a substantial Non-secure Facility means any rity level of II, III, or IV shall be renumbered to 3375.2(a)(12) ting with a secure perimeter as portion of the proposed of the following Departmental housed in a facility with a lethal New Subsection 3375.2(a)(10) defined in section 3000 or from regulations, which is facilities: Minimum Support electrified fence as defined in is adopted to read: an armed escort. understandable considering Facilities, Camps and section 3000. (10) An inmate serving a life (H) Does not require Maxi- our space issue. If you would Community Correctional Subsection 3375.2(a)(7) is term with the possibility of pa- mum or Close custody. wish to read the full proposed Centers (i.e. Community unchanged but shown as refer- role may be housed in a secure (I) Does not have a mandatory regulation, please go to oal. Correctional Reentry Centers, ence. Level I facility as defined in minimum score factor currently ca.gov. Page 6 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 The history and accomplishment of Black Americans nary act for 1646. Americas…” in the new American colonies. ties across the country had been Editorial Then, in 1664, Maryland However, from 1750 to the That was the fear that discon- celebrating Douglass’.” passed various laws forbidding 1840s, countless slaves escaped tented whites would join black Before Black History Month By Richard “Bonaru” Richardson marriage between Black men and joined the Seminole Nation slaves to overthrow the existing was celebrated, Blacks had Editor-in-Chief and White women, and by the to fight for territorial claims order,” Zinn notes. made significant progress in 18th century Rhode Island was against the U.S. government, ac- Blacks and Whites have strug- America, ranging from people Slavery underlies the history the leader in the slave trade. cording to Corbin. gled with and against each other like James Derham, who was of Blacks in America. Though Vermont became the first state During this time, other slaves to escape the embrace of slav- the first Black physician in 1783, many people would rather forget to abolish slavery in 1777; in began to rebel, and many out- ery’s legacy. to Henry Blair, who became the it ever existed, slavery walked 1778 the Continental Congress breaks erupted throughout the In April of 1887, the Ku Klux first Black person to receive a down American history as soon outlawed slavery in all the north- colonies and continued after in- Klan met in Nashville, Tennes- U.S. patent in 1834. as the country was settled. western territories of the coun- dependence from England. see, even after Congress passed Before the battle of Trenton in Slavery was abolished under try, and Boston became the only Gabriel Prosser, who orches- a second confiscation act that 1776, it was African-American the 13th Amendment, with one U.S. city to be without slaves trated a 1,000-slave revolt in sought to protect ex-slaves soldier Oliver Cromwell who exception: felony conviction. in 1790. During that same year, Richmond, Virginia, led one, in against the torches of the KKK. rowed General George Washing- The first colony to consider the first census recorded that 1800. Fifty-nine years later John As America grew, Black and ton across the Delaware River. slavery a legal institution was 19.3 percent of Americans were Brown led five Blacks and 17 White people showed they could Mathematician and astrono- Massachusetts in 1641, ac- Black. Whites in an attack against the work together in a positive man- mer Benjamin Banneker pub- cording to author Raymond M. Historian and author Howard U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry, ner by forming the NAACP in lished 10 almanacs between Corbin’s Facts about Blacks. Zinn wrote in A People’s His- Virginia, in an attempt to spark a 1907. Forty-seven Whites and the years 1792 and 1802, while Governor Theophilus Eaton of tory of the United States that “by general uprising, Corbin wrote. six Blacks founded it. Mary Jane Patterson became the Connecticut freed his slaves, ac- 1800, 10 to 15 million blacks had “Only one fear was greater Soon afterward, the seeds of a first Black woman to receive a cording to Corbin, an extraordi- been transported as slaves to the than the fear of black rebellion Black history month were sewn degree from Oberlin College in in Chicago during the late sum- 1862. mer of 1915. Alexandria, Virginia, became “An alumnus of the University the first southern city to allow Letters To The Editor of Chicago with many friends Black people to vote on March Dear Editor: in the city, Carter G. Woodson 2, 1866, and Illinois was the first In reading the latest edition of the San Quentin News (December 2016), there is an article in the MAC Corner, “SQ’s television signal gets an traveled from Washington, D.C., state east of the Mississippi to upgrade.” to participate in a national cel- give African American women We do not know what television the author of the article was watching, but the signal in West Block is not as described in the article in many ebration of the 50th anniversary the right to vote in 1913. respects; it is worse than it was prior to the “upgrade.” The Bay Area over-the-air digital channels are not stable, while prior to the upgrade of emancipation sponsored by Black contractor John Muller these channels were stable. In speaking to individuals in North Block, they are having similar problems with over-the-air television reception the state of Illinois,” according invented the asphalt-paving ma- also. The consensus is that the article as written regarding improved over-the-air television reception is in error. That sentiment is prior to the recent inclement weather that we are now experiencing. to the article The Black History chine named the Muller Paver. For example, why would one mount the antenna on the West Block roof that is facing Sacramento barely above the roof ventilator that Month by Professor Daryl Mi- Jewel Prestage became the first houses an electrical motor? Electrical motors have magnified fields that negatively affect television signals. Even when turned off the wires chael Scott. Black woman to earn her Ph.D. carrying the electricity to the motor emits an electrical/magnetic field. (This is how an induction volt-ohmmeter works without the need to Professor Scott wrote that Dr. in political science, and Edward contact bare wires). To have an antenna that has to reach a further distance mounted low on its respective mast defies common sense. The further away a signal is the higher the antenna should be placed. Woodson “believed that pub- A. Bouchet was the first Black It is requested that before printing articles of this nature that have an effect upon the population of San Quentin that those facts be checked lishing scientific history would man to earn his Ph.D. in phys- and confirmed. As written now, the article allows complaints regarding television reception to be interpreted as frivolous, whining and transform race relations by dis- ics. Mae C. Jamison was the first generally not credible. The institutional staff can point to this article about MAC saying that everything is fixed and operating, which, as pelling the widespread false- Black space mission specialist stated previously, is in error. hoods about the achievements of woman to go into space on the Thank you for your time and attention in this matter. Africans and peoples of African shuttle Endeavor in 1992. Sincerely, descent. He hoped that others Black people have come a long would popularize the findings way since the dark days of slav- Sahnuun Ahmad Rasheed that he and other black intellec- ery. tuals would publish in The Jour- America has had its first Black nal of Negro History, which he President with Barack Obama, To San Quentin News, established in 1916.” and there are currently three Woodson chose February for members of the U.S. Senate, in- I’m writing from Salinas Valley State Prison, A-Facility, and want to give props to our warden, Mr. Muniz, and his underbosses, Mr. Solis and Black History Month to honor cluding Kamala Harris of Cali- Mr. Binkele, for giving us the tools we need to be able to stand up and be accountable as men. I’m in a college level class called T.U.M.I. and it’s changing the landscape of this prison yard. Our warden believes in rehabilitation and second chances. Because even though we’re some the birthdays of Abraham Lin- fornia, Tim Scott (R-SC) and of society’s best rejects, we still have to reach for redemption with sincere hearts and be men. So, instead of being on a collision course with coln and Frederick Douglass. Corey Booker (D-N.J.) and 46 a cell in a SHU somewhere, Warden Muniz has given us a chance to grow as human beings, and he needs to be recognized and respected “Since Lincoln’s assassination members in the House of Repre- for the olive branch he’s extending to us here at S.V.S.P. in 1865, the black community, sentatives. Sincerely, along with other Republicans, America must not forget that had been celebrating the fallen there is a lot more to be accom- Anderson, H-81578 President’s birthday. And since plished before we can truly con- Salinas Valley State Prison, A-2-209 the late 1890s, black communi- sider ourselves in a united state. Parole grants skewed by race in New York State By Rahsaan Thomas ated men 10 minutes to plead purse in church. The court gave dered an investigation into the State Sen. Patrick Gallivan, Staff Writer their cases. However, these are him probation, but a probation practice of punishing incarcer- a Republican chairman of the just part of New York’s broken violation sent him to prison for ated Blacks more than Whites. committee that oversees the de- Even in prison, it is a privi- parole system, according to the one to three years. “I am directing the state in- partment of corrections, said, lege to be White, according to a Times Dec. 2016 article. Summa, who has a history spector general to investigate the committee would review recent study. It showed that the The story titled “For Blacks of convictions for theft, drugs the allegations of racial dispari- any new appointments right New York State Board of Parole Facing Parole in New York and robbery, and has spent 12 of ties in discipline in state prisons away, according to the Times grants Whites parole more often State, Signs of a Broken Sys- the last 15 years in prison, was and to recommend appropriate article than Blacks who committed the tem” said research revealed serving three and a half to seven reforms for immediate imple- Appealing a parole board de- same crimes. racial disparity in parole deci- years for robbing a deli. Bostic mentations,” wrote Cuomo in a cision takes about two years, “Before a black inmate takes sions. had one minor disciplinary in- statement. which is almost the same as a seat in the hearing room and The newspaper found a clear fraction, and Summa had two. Parole board members are the time it takes to get a new utters a word, the odds are pattern of racial inequity from They both told the board they almost all White men from up- hearing. Plus, all the state Su- stacked against him. Guards analyzing more than 13,876 had family and jobs waiting state New York, the newspaper preme Court can do is order a punish black men in some pris- parole board decisions for first- upon release. Summa complet- stated. This means they have new hearing, according to the ons at twice the rate of whites, time appearances from May ed all his programs, Bostic, who more in common with White article. send them to solitary confine- 2013 to 2016. was serving less time, did not. prisoners than Black men from A state judicial commission ment more often and keep them Violent offenders were denied The board denied Bostic pa- the inner city, leading to more in 2014 recommended doing there longer,” a New York Times parole 90 percent of the time, role for at least one year but re- favorable parole decisions for away with parole boards in fa- analysis of nearly 60,000 cases no matter what race they were. leased Summa. Within months Whites. vor of determinate sentences. found. Non-violent offenders were re- after being freed, Summa Last June Cuomo nominated For 20 years, sentences with New York parole commis- leased significantly more. For- robbed a Chinese restaurant. new commissioners, includ- pre-defined parole board dates sioners viewing the case are ty-one percent of White third- At Clinton Correctional Fa- ing several minorities, but the have been issued for half of the all White except for one Black degree burglary offenders were cility, the Times found only corrections hearing committee state’s offenders, including most man, the study said. The White paroled compared to 30 percent one of 998 guards is Black, and never confirmed any of them. drug offenders. However, the men mainly come from upstate of Blacks and Hispanics. Blacks incarcerated there were Cuomo said he plans to advance Times found doing away with areas and have mostly law en- The story cited the cases of nearly four times more likely new appointments soon to make parole boards keeps everyone in forcement backgrounds. Braxton Bostic, a young Black than Whites to be sent to isola- the current parole board panel prison longer and destroys the The boards hear up to 80 man, and Robert Summa, a tion for longer periods of time. more reflective of the three- incentive to take rehabilitative cases in two days through video 49-year-old White man. Bostic, After the Dec. 5 Times story fourths Black and Hispanic programs in order to earn good screens, and only give incarcer- at 17, stole some money from a broke, Gov. Andrew Cuomo or- prison population. time for early release. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 7 Stockton mayor believes in the power of forgiveness same,” said Tubbs. tions ... have a ripple effect that circle grappled with the defini- Kid CAT Speaks! The symposium also heard a reached far out.” tion of rehabilitation and defined speech from Anouthinh Pangth- At the end of his speech, Pan- it as community and reciprocal By Rahsaan Thomas ong, the incarcerated man who gthong apologized directly to accountability. The tragedy was Staff Writer apologized for a murder he com- Tubbs for “terrorizing Stockton.” that the brilliant and insightful mitted at 15. While going to Stanford, men in blue found their selves Last year, California voters Pangthong spoke candidly Tubbs researched how govern- and their voice while locked in turned down a chance to end the about the crime he committed as mental decisions affect the choic- cages but not in our schools, death penalty, choosing instead a gang member, his remorse and es people make in the inner-city. churches, or community centers. to speed up the process—an in- some of the factors that led to it, “Every single break from 2 of the other keynote speakers dication they don’t believe mur- such as intergenerational trauma school, somebody was in prison were from Stockton and are fin- der should be forgiven. However, passed down from parents who or dead,” said Tubbs. “There had ishing their sentences before they Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs fled war-torn Laos and ended up to be something going on deeper come back home. Before I left believes in forgiveness. in a refugee camp. than individual choices.” one said, ‘Mr. Tubbs I apologize On Facebook, the newly elect- He also talked about joining a Tubbs’ dad has been incarcer- for the harms I caused our com- ed mayor posted his acceptance gang in search of an identity. Then ated since he was 12 years old. In- munity when I was 15. (He’s now of an apology from a murderer Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News he spoke about the rehabilitative stead of writing off men, like his 35).’ ” incarcerated at San Quentin. Stockton Mayor groups that helped restore his hu- father, who have made bad choic- I responded with, “We forgive “When I look at you, I think of Michael Tubbs manity, including Restoring One’s es, the 26-year old mayor came you, now come back and help us Moses who committed murder but Original True Self (ROOTS), searching for a way to “take the improve, you are part of the so- God used to do amazing things,” dorsed by Oprah Winfrey, at- Criminal Gang Anonymous skills and brain power to restore, lution. Ironic that I would see a said Tubbs at a symposium that tended the Kid CAT (Creating (CGA) and Victim Offender Edu- create better communities and model of humanity, love, humil- united survivors of violent crimes Awareness Together) self-help cation Group (VOEG). build bridges over bad choices.” ity and community in San Quen- and men who committed violent group event at San Quentin State “I never considered the ripple That night, after the sympo- tin.” crimes as juveniles. Prison. effects for pulling the trigger,” sium Tubbs posted on Facebook, Pangthong responded: “I’m The two groups came together To end structural violence, said Pangthong. “It took me Reflections from San Quentin: humbled and touched by the to talk about rehabilitation and “It’s going to take people who writing out my crime in detail, “Afterwards, there were circles mayor’s response but, the real Restorative Justice as solutions. have survived crimes, and who then it hit me — the magnitude of with offenders, survivors, and work is still to be done. Our com- That was on Oct. 13, when Tubbs, have committed crimes and what I’d done. That was my first community members that were munities are suffering, so healing then a City Council member en- sometimes they are one and the assignment from VOEG. My ac- both healing and instructive. My them is where my focus is.” New adolescent research could impact juvenile justice By John Lam “criminality” haviors. Others include driver According to IYEF, the threat comes Journalism Guild Writer The memo noted, “Recent deaths, unintentional drown- of immediate or light conse- IYEF advocates the following adolescent brain development ings, unintended pregnancies quences plays the greatest role to improve community prac- City leaders are urged to adopt research confirms that misbe- and self-inflicted injuries. in deterring youth crime. By tices: juvenile justice reform practices havior, even crime... [are] due According to IYEF, the type contrast, serious punishment Use a more expansive risk- that are based on recent adoles- to particular qualities of this of crime a young person com- such as arrest and prosecution and-needs assessment tool such cent development research. unique developmental phase.” mits does not accurately predict may actually increase the short as Youth Level of Service In- In a memo addressed to city The teen brain seeks imme- future ongoing criminal activ- and long-term cost to public sys- ventory to match the right youth leaders, the Institute for Youth diate gratification, excitement, ity. The memo states, “we can- tems and risks to public safety. with the right services. Education and Families (IYEF) and peer approval and lacks im- not predict that a youth who car- Regarding cost to the pub- Form a continuum of commu- outlined the following three key pulse control and the ability to ries a gun is more or less likely lic system, IYEF points to two nity-based services, including aspects for city officials to focus weigh long-term consequences. than a youth who shoplifts to studies that found youth who mentorships, community ser- on. In fact, delinquent acts repre- become a career criminal.” experience intensive involve- vices and extracurricular activi- A. Youth crime stems sent one manifestation among B. More severe consequences ment in the juvenile justice ties that promote independent more from adolescence than many adolescent risk taking be- do not prove more effective system suffered worse life out- decision making and critical comes, including incidences of thinking. physical and sexual abuse and Use restorative practices that related trauma in juvenile de- have a proven positive outcome, Children with incarcerated tention facilities and an increase such as community conferenc- in truancy and dropping out. ing, to engage young people in Regarding increased risks to decision making. parents struggle with stigma public safety, arrested and pros- IYEF relied on four studies ecuted youth showed the follow- to reach its conclusion: the By Harry Goodall Jr. Chronicle article by Jill Tucker trauma of seeing parents in in- ing negative outcomes: University of California Journalism Guild Writer called “Parent in Prison— Child mate attire amid armed guards. They are more likely to reof- Irvine study “Crossroads”; the a Captive.” A growing consensus of experts fend within six months; University of Pittsburg study Children with incarcerated “It becomes something you considers the interaction benefi- They are more likely to be re- “Pathways to Desistance”; The parents find it hard to fight off can use against me,” Garcia cial to children and the locked arrested within two years; and National Research Council the stigma. said. “It starts becoming a label up parents. They reduce offending more study “Reforming Juvenile There are an estimated 10 you carry around with you.” “It is an enormously important slowly over a subsequent period Justice: a Developmental million children whose parents She was asked by a teacher, issue, but it remains a subtext to of two years. Approach”; and the Municipal have been incarcerated at some who knew of her father’s situa- this country’s ongoing epidemic C. Provide well-targeted ser- Leadership in Juvenile Justice point in their life, according to tion, if she was trying to follow of mass incarceration,” the arti- vices to achieve positive out- Reform. “Collateral Costs,” a Pew Chari- in his footsteps because of a cle quotes State Sen. Mark Leno, table Trusts (PCT) report. One classroom disruption. D-San Francisco, as saying. in nine Black children, one in The article says that most “In this rush to lock them up, Kid CAT and The Beat Within hold monthly writing workshops. The Beat 28 Latino children, and one in children of incarcerated parents three strikes and you’re out, Within conducts writing workshops in juvenile detention centers throughout the 57 White children have a parent (CIPs), who call themselves sips, we’ve been completely blind to country. Kid CAT Speaks will publish one topic each month. Your writing should incarcerated. don’t want to talk much about the impact on families,” Leno reflect a positive message that may help the youth make a better decision in Such children have a greater their lives. Those willing to talk added. life. Your stories will be read by the youth in detention centers. If published, you chance of experiencing physical can be guarded, mistrustful and Studies show that such chil- will receive a free copy of the publication. Your story can make a difference. Tell and mental health issues, includ- sometimes angry. No one under- dren have a harder time being The Beat Within you read about them in Kid CAT Speaks! ing anxiety and depression, ac- stands what CIPs go through, productive and leading success- Does it matter?— In November, California voters approved Proposition 57, cording to “Shared Sentence,” a they say. And no one seems to ful lives. Only 15 percent of kids which is rooted in the belief that rehabilitation works. The new law has the published report by the Annie E. want to. with an incarcerated father and potential to strengthen California’s justice system and increase public safety by Casey Foundation. “I’m way more things than 2 percent of those with an incar- expanding rehabilitation in prisons and improving the process by which youth Families that are financially a CIP,” Garcia was quoted as cerated mother earn a college can be tried as adults. Proposition 57 requires judges, rather than prosecutors unstable are more likely to be saying. “It’s not all we have to degree, according to Pew statis- (DAs), to decide whether minors as young as 14 years old should be tried as homeless. Studies support that offer.” tics. adults and sent to adult prison. It allows people convicted of a non-violent felony children of incarcerated parents Garcia has a father who served “Family is about love, com- and sentenced to state prison to be eligible for parole consideration after com- are three times more likely to time in San Quentin State Pris- mitment and dedication,” said pleting the full term of their primary offense. Whether or not you live in Califor- nia, how important is it to have a judge, not a district attorney, make the decision become incarcerated also. on, and she aspires to become a school co-director Jessica that a juvenile will be tried as an adult? What are your thoughts on the current Seventeen-year-old Luna Gar- writer or a politician. Huang at Garcia’s high school system you find yourself dealing with? Does it need to be improved? How? cia is one of those children who There is a debate on whether graduation. Garcia graduated has chosen not to tell people children should visit parents high school, and is now attend- The Beat Within her dad’s in jail. She was in- while in prison. Some warn ing City College of San Fran- P.O. Box 34310 terviewed for a San Francisco against it, noting the potential cisco. San Francisco, CA 94134

Kid CAT (Creating Awareness Together) is a group of men who committed their crimes under the age of 25 and were sentenced as adults to life terms. The group’s mission is to inspire humanity through education, mentorship and restorative practices. Kid CAT Speaks wants to hear from all the juvenile lifers, educators, and policymakers concerning juvenile justice issues and rehabilitation. Contact us at San Quentin News, Attn: Kid CAT Speaks, 1 Main St., San Quentin, CA 94964. Page 8 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Cycle of incarceration trap mother and son By Marcus Henderson give her the longest hug; I know I truly apologize to her and I Journalism Guild Chairman we both need it.” know I messed up. I had so much After his mother went to prison jealousy and anger build-up Devin Cole last saw his mom Cole was raised by his grandpar- from my childhood.” when he was 2 years old. Then ents in Pittsburg, Calif. “When Cole says he accepts responsi- she went to prison. That was 22 I would ask about my mother, bility for his action. He has taken years ago, when Alisa “Lee Lee” the conversation wouldn’t last advantage of rehabilitative pro- Stanifer began serving a life sen- long,” Cole said. “They would grams by completing Nonviolent tence at the California Institution show me pictures of her and tell Communication and is presently for Women (CIW) in Corona. me she was in prison.” When he in the Next Step program. He Cole has been wearing denim was older, they finally told him, is a computer programing class at San Quentin for a year serving she was in prison for murder and member and plays on the pris- five years on a domestic violence robbery. Photo by SQN Courtesy of Devin Cole on’s flag football team. conviction. His mother would phone home Devin Cole Alisa “Lee Lee” Stanifer “I learned to show empathy Mother-son incarceration on for the holidays, but Cole admit- because I wasn’t doing that,” he felony charges is rare indeed and ted he didn’t know what to say. Turlock at the age of 11 led Cole trouble. said. “You have to have empathy Cole says it is not easy. Over the He had become numb emotion- into trouble and juvenile hall “I started to think my mom is to connect with people.” years, he says he has learned to ally because he didn’t know her. after being bullied by other teens a real gangster, but being in pris- He currently is going through forgive, cope, and is struggling “Our calls were real short,” who resented the newcomer. on myself I see that she was just the approval process to corre- to break this generational prison he said. “We never talked about Cole retrieved his grandfather’s going through her struggles.” spond through letters with his life. when she was coming home. gun and committed an assault Cole sometimes thinks about mother in CIW. One in eight African Ameri- “I remember at age 10, I got with a deadly weapon. what life would be like if she had “I wish it was a way I could can children has a parent behind a bike from a church who said At the age of 14, sitting in ju- never gone to prison. just hear her voice,” he said. “Just bars and one in 10 children of your mother sent you this; I re- venile hall, Cole would see his Cole, 25, is serving his sen- like with the writing process, we prisoners will be incarcerated ally felt she was real in my life at mother on a TV program called tence in San Quentin because of should be able to talk for birth- before reaching the age of 18, that time.” Lock Up. violence against a longtime girl- days or holidays. Prison policy according to San Francisco Chil- Cole had to grow up fast “She looked liked she was friend, who happened to be older does not allow family members dren of Incarcerated Parents once his grandmother died. His doing good,” he said. “She was than he is. in separate institutions to have Partnership. grandfather was a good provider, talking about prison life and how “I started to look at her like phone calls. Cole is trapped in this statistic. but he lacked the nurturing of a she was dealing with her situa- a mother figure,” Cole said. “I “I love and miss her; I just “I can’t wait to see my mother mother. tion. At the end of the show, the started to lash out at her when hope she does what she needs to face to face,” Cole said. “I will A move from Pittsburg to guard said she was constantly in I couldn’t get what I wanted. do for the parole board.” President’s nominee for attorney general draws controversy

By Forrest Lee Jones Jason Miller believes Sessions a great deal of concern among selection of Sessions, those fears between crack and powdered Journalism Guild Writer will be confirmed. Justice Department lawyers, have been realized. cocaine. “Mr. Sessions “Senator Sessions is someone setting the stage for a mass “If there was a level above specifically argued that this President Donald Trump’s who is universally respected exodus, reports Gerstein. DEFCON One, it would be created unfair racial disparities, controversial nomination of across party lines in the U.S. During the run-up to the that,” said Sam Bagenstos, a since crack was the drug of poor Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) Senate,” Miller said. “We feel election, senior department civil rights division official. inner cities,” reported the The for United States Attorney Gen- very confident that Senator lawyers, who implement “Jeff Sessions has a unique and Wall Street Journal. eral (AG) is expected to be ap- Sessions has the background voting rights, investigate police uniquely troubled history with “The only reason folks are proved by Congress despite and the support to receive brutality and prosecute hate the civil rights division ... From criticizing him is because people liberal opposition, according to confirmation.” crimes, were worried about the perspective of the work of don’t like his conservative Josh Gerstein of Politico. But, critics say the selection the consequences of a Trump the enforcement of civil rights, principles,” said Hans von Trump team representative of Sessions as AG has created presidency. Now with the I think the Sessions pick is a Spakovsky, a former official in particularly troublesome one — the Justice Department’s civil more than anyone else you can rights division under President think of.” George W. Bush. “He’s a CoreCivic claims success for One of the concerns comes very good guy. The claims from the department’s anti- resurrecting these claims of discrimination unit, regarding racism are complete and total educational programs racist comments made by bull.” Sessions to a Black lawyer. In Von Spakovsky says critics By Thomas Gardner percent less likely to re-offend vide those opportunities for the a 1986 judgeship nomination fail to acknowledge Sen. Journalism Guild Writer and have a 13 percent higher individuals in our care.” before a Senate Judiciary Sessions’ efforts to fight the chance of gaining employment Ramirez-Carr credits Co- Committee, a Black lawyer Klan in his state. CoreCivic is boasting higher when released. A study from reCivic’s educational success testified that Sen. Sessions “It was his case that he filed than expected success rates in the Research and Development rates to hard-working teach- referred to him as “boy,” against the KKK that helped its educational programs, The Corporation has affirmed this ers and tutoring programs they and another lawyer testified break the back of the Klan in Eloy Enterprise reports. statistic, according to Clinch. have been able to offer. Sessions saying the Ku Klux Alabama,” Von Spakovsky said. At La Palma Correctional “It’s incumbent upon all of According to Clinch’s report, Klan was “OK, until I heard that Von Spakovsky acknowl- Center in Eloy (CCA operated us to educate these students as at La Palma, 67 percent of in- they smoked pot.” edged there will be a large private prison facility), “as of much as possible because these mates who take the GED test Moreover, the Justice number of resignations in the late August, 94 inmates had people will return to the com- pass it. Department complaints are not civil rights division. He hopes received their GED in 2016 munity, and we’re trying to de- Additionally, CoreCivic is just related to Sen. Sessions’ they do because of their liberal through the programs offered. velop productive citizens,” said also “looking to supply more comments but his unsuccessful views. In addition, 557 inmates have Ramirez-Carr, Clinch reports. advanced education opportuni- prosecution of Black civil rights “There may be an exodus. I also received vocational certifi- Approximately 3,000 in- ties at La Palma, hoping to add leaders for ballot-tampering. hope, frankly, there is,” said von cates in everything from electri- mates are housed at La Palma an associate’s program in con- Albert Turner, a former Spakovsky. cal, to carpentry and plumbing, on behalf of the California De- struction management to their assistant to Rev. Martin Luther Lisa Graves, a former according to a CoreCivic press partment of Corrections and curriculum to go along with King Jr., who was acquitted, lawyer during the Clinton release,” says Tanner Clinch of Rehabilitation (CDCR). In ad- the horticulture and master gar- once described the prosecution administration, is concerned The Eloy Enterprise. dition, CoreCivic runs three dener certifications they offer as more like a “witch hunt” by what impact an appointment by This figure is on course to other prison facilities in Eloy, through a partnership with the Sen. Sessions. Sen. Sessions would have upon surpass that of the previous according to The Eloy Enter- University of Arizona,” Supporters of Sen. Session police brutality cases. year, where 73 inmates ob- prise report. Currently, CoreCivic is also say the allegations being made “With respect to Sessions’ tained their GEDs, and another CDCR Public Information working on growth, with a new are unfounded and a cover for background, I think it’s a really 747 inmates obtained vocation- Officer Joe Orlando noted, facility in the making. A “$34 liberals’ disagreements with the serious question of whether al certificates, Clinch says. “Education has always been a million, 97,000-square-foot- senator’s political views. he will at all continue the La Palma Correctional priority throughout our prison expansion will house eight 50- “Throughout three Justice Department’s process Center’s Principal of Education, system, whether the inmate is bed dorms for prisoners, along intervening decades of public of examining these cases where Yolanda Fernanez-Carr, said, housed in-state or at one of the with support facilities such as life, Mr. Sessions hasn’t evinced people are shot who are unarmed “These inmates are able to contract bed units, food and medical service, as an iota of racial animus,” said and often African-American,” change their lifestyle just by the Speaking on behalf of Core- well as recreation such as bas- Quin Hillyer, a columnist in Graves said. “I just don’t have fact that they either continue Civic, Director of Educational ketball courts, libraries, a base- Mobile, Ala., in The Wall Street any confidence he’ll do the right their education or they get into Services Michelle Cotter, ac- ball field and, of course, educa- Journal. Further, Sen. Sessions thing.” one of the trades when they get cording to the report, said, “We tion. The new facility will offer has demonstrated his pursuit According to Gerstein, while out,” Clinch reports. know that quality education more opportunities for voca- of equal justice as one of three Democrats express concern It has been recognized that and vocational training are cru- tional education in computing sponsors of the Fair Sentencing about Sessions, they say they inmates who participate in edu- cial to successful reentry, and and electrical training,” Clinch Act of 2010, which reduced will reserve judgment until cation while incarcerated are 43 we are always working to pro- reported. differences in sentencing terms confirmation hearings start. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 9 Inmate’s path back from a very bad start

By Emile DeWeaver “I ran back into the room, and adult and sentenced him to 25 committed their crimes before Staff Writer he was ...” Spence paused, un- years to life. their rational facilities have fully able to speak for a moment. His “The moment after I commit- developed. He teaches them to Charlie Spence dreams of muscular jaw flexed beneath a ted my crime, I was committed locate the human values inside going home after two decades blond beard that doesn’t quite to change my life,” Spence said, them and allow these values to in prison, but he may never go cover a thick scar that curves responding to the court’s idea inform their emotions and ac- home because of decisions he from his eye to cheek. “He was that he couldn’t be rehabilitated. tions. He said he wants to em- made as a teenager. dead. I don’t have words for “After the court sentenced me, I power them to constructively Spence gave up on school that moment. I was devastated. eventually arrived at High Des- contribute to their environments when teachers humiliated him; I called for an ambulance. We ert State Prison in 1998. It was a and to themselves. he started using drugs so other were arrested.” violent, maximum security pris- “It’s how I make meaning out kids would accept him, and when The robbery in which Spence on, and thoughts of changing my of my past,” Spence said. He’s a he was 16 years old, he commit- participated resulted in the vic- life went out the window. Life peer counselor in VOEG (Victim ted his first robbery. tim’s death. Under California’s became about surviving.” Offenders Education Group), “My earliest memory was of felony-murder rule, Spence High Desert didn’t offer the where he helps men process their my father trying to urinate on my would be found guilty of murder rehabilitative programs Spence traumatic histories. He hopes to baby brother in his crib,” Spence if the district attorney proved Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News needed to address his traumas bring them healing, so that one said, retelling the moments in his that he had intended to commit and turn his life onto a posi- day, they’ll be able to pay that life that he believes led him to a a robbery. Charlie Spence tive course. Just as he’d done in healing forward to others. place where he was able to com- er a juvenile an adult if it finds school when he became involved Spence has a lot of plans for mit violence against another hu- any of the following: the crime with communal drug use, he the future. He’s a few classes man being. “My mother tried to “It’s how I make is too severe, the juvenile can’t found acceptance in the prison away from a bachelor’s degree in stop him, and he just beat her.” be rehabilitated by the time he or drug culture. specialized studies, psychology Spence said that two abusive meaning out she is 25 years old, the juvenile’s Though he was still making and leadership. He’s also study- father figures damaged his abil- of my past” crime shows an adult amount of irresponsible decisions, Spence ing the LSAT, so he can attend ity to form relationships with sophistication, or the juvenile still managed to make gradual law school upon his release. other males. Mistrust led to iso- has a past record. changes in his life. “I have the experience of a lation that was exacerbated by Spence was a juvenile then, Spence had never been ar- “I was a programmer,” he said. young man coming into the sys- placement in Special Education and the law places the burden on rested, but the district attorney Programmer is a term that des- tem, and with a law degree I’ll at school. the juvenile’s defense to prove in argued that because Spence used ignates an incarcerated person have the credibility with the au- He eventually started hanging a special hearing that the child drugs, that meant he was a crim- who practices self-improvement dience I want to address.” out with drug users, and commu- is eligible to be considered as a inal living a criminal lifestyle. and doesn’t cause problems for He also wants to return to Ag- nal drug use eased his sense of juvenile by the court. (Califor- According to Spence, this was correctional officers. “But I still ate Beach, a special place for alienation. “It didn’t matter that nia’s Proposition 57 is trying to enough by law to try Spence as had one foot in and one foot out him on the coast of the Califor- I was stupid; it didn’t matter that change this practice, which is an adult, but the district attorney of the right kind of lifestyle. I nia-Oregon border. His grandfa- I was worthless. These guys ac- called direct filing.) also argued that Spence showed was still seeking acceptance in ther used to fish there from the cepted me.” In court, a Sacramento Coun- adult sophistication because he ways that devalued my worth. It shoreline into the surf for perch. According to Spence, court ty sheriff escorted Spence to used a butter knife to jimmy the took me 15 years to realize that “I used to watch him from records reflect that Spence’s what is called a 707(b) hearing door to his mother’s bedroom I was behaving in the same way a little plateau on the beach. I friend Thomas tried to rob a vic- to determine whether a 16-year- to retrieve the gun with which that had caused me to commit could sit there for hours, ab- tim while Spence was using the old kid was eligible to be treated Thomas eventually killed the my crime when I was 16.” sorbing the sounds and sights bathroom. The victim grabbed like a 16-year-old kid. The court, victim. Today, Spence works with and him. I dream of going back the gun, and Thomas shot him. according to Spence, can consid- The court tried Spence as an youth offenders, people who there.”

H appy Valentines Day

I love you two more than anything in this world. Happy Valentine’s day my loves. -Chad Cleveland I’m with her. When Your other half is your better half, two people in love to- gether forever equals longevity. -Anthony Denard

Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate that special love in your life. I’m truly blessed and thank- Happy Valentine’s Day ful to have an amzaing wife to enjoy it with. -Greg Eskridge to the loves of my life. - Caleb Eller Page 10 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Celebrating the unknown accomplishments of Ali, Foster and other Black Americans dogs and denied simple human len, Jenny Lyons and Melissa rights?” Davis. Outstanding work facili- Ali’s battles The government arrested Ali, tating the GRIP program wins found him guilty of draft eva- the award. The honorees come beyond sion and stripped him of his from diverse backgrounds. boxing titles and licenses. Ali Guillen is incarcerated. Lyons didn’t fight again for nearly four was a victim of crime and Da- the ring years, from ages 25-29, accord- vis, of the Marin County Pro- ing to Wikipedia. bation Department, teaches do- By Rahsaan Thomas “I really believe we missed mestic violence prevention. Staff Writer seeing him develop a whole “They may be ordinary peo- lot of his skill level,” said Per- ple, but they’re still the great- Muhammad Ali risked going ry. “We didn’t get to see those est,” said GRIP founder Jacques to prison during the prime years prime years. That was a tragedy Verduin. of his boxing career to stand to all who loved him.” The robe honoring an am- up for his beliefs. The fight for Ali remained free pending bassador of peace reflects Ali’s equality didn’t end after his last appeal of the court’s decision principles. After the Sept. 11 at- heavyweight match; he dedicat- overturning his conviction in tacks in 2001, Ali stated, “Islam ed his retirement to continuing 1971. Ali regained the heavy- is a religion of peace” and “does the struggle. Ali died on June 3, weight title at age 32 by beat- not promote terrorism or killing 2016 at age 74, but his achieve- ing George Foreman in “The people.” ments still affect the lives of Rumble in the Jungle” on Oct. After Ali retired from box- File Photo many, including incarcerated 30, 1974. ing in 1981, he got “ready to Muhammad Ali with Martin Luther King, Jr. people. meet God” by aiding charitable “Ali was the greatest,” said causes and working for peace the first Hip Hop record in late to Larry Holmes in 1980 and incarcerated boxing enthusi- around the world. 1970s. In 1963, Ali released an Trevor Berbick in 1981, with a ast Perry Simpson. “He was a “Youngsters are Part of that charity album of spoken word music on record of 61 fights, 56 wins, 37 father figure, an uncle figure looking at him and included visiting California Columbia Records titled I Am by knockout, and 5 losses. — someone to look up to. His Rehabilitation Center (CRC) the Greatest. In 1984, Ali was diagnosed history speaks for itself. His they see a man they in 1985. While there, he signed Ali used his lyrical skill to with Parkinson’s disease, which strength and character, the way autographs and demonstrated fight against injustice. He wrote some experts believe can result he stuck to things, and all the should be, could be magic tricks for the women a poem, speaking out against from head trauma. stuff he went through during and ought to be” prisoners. what happened when then-New A respiratory illness hospital- the times he went through them. Next, Ali went to the men’s York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller ized Ali on June 2, 2016. He died He was a real-life superman.” side of CRC where he offered called in the National Guard the following day from septic In 1964, at 22 years old, Ali Long after Ali’s last round, noon prayers with the Muslim and state police to retake Attica shock. became one of the youngest he is still remembered at San community, then went to the Prison from incarcerated men Immediately following Ali’s heavyweight champions by Quentin State Prison. In 2014, gym where he boxed with an protesting their conditions. death, he trended as the number defeating Sonny Liston. Two one of Ali’s robes was donated incarcerated man. He also When the turmoil ended, 33 one topic on Twitter for 12 years later, Ali took on the to Guiding Rage Into Power donated 200 books. prisoners and 10 correctional hours and on Facebook for United States government when (GRIP), a program aimed at Ali was a big influence on hip- employees were dead, according days. ESPN, CNN, BBC, Fox the army called on him to serve helping people stop their vio- hop music. According to Rolling to Blood in the Water (2016) by News, and ABC News covered in the Vietnam War. lence. Called the “Victory Stone, his “freestyle skills … Heather Ann Thompson. him extensively and BET aired “War is against the teachings Robe,” it is awarded to someone rhymes, flow, and braggadocio” “To die fighting to be free, Muhammad Ali: Made In Miami. of the Qur’an,” said Ali. “I’m in the program who has over- would “one day become typical what better ending could there “Ali’s death is a great loss, but not trying to dodge the draft. come challenges and is deeply of old school MCs” such as Run be,” said Ali. “They opened fire it’s a rebirth too because now the Why should they ask me to dedicated to serving the com- D.M.C. and LL Cool J. on us, but they died telling it like light has been shined on him and put on a uniform and go ten- munity. Ali used rhyme schemes in it was.” the things he did in his life are thousand miles from home Every year the robe passes spoken word poetry, political Ali fought past medical coming back full circle,” said and drop bombs and bullets on to the new recipient whose activism and trash talked advice from his doctor Ferdie Perry. “Youngsters are looking on Brown people in Vietnam name is embroidered in gold opponents long before The Last Pacheco, who advised him to at him and they see a man they while so-called Negro people on it, right under the name of Poets in 1968, Gil Scott Heron retire in 1977. He ended his should be, could be and ought to in Louisville are treated like the past honorees Robin Guil- in 1970 or Rapper’s Delight, career with back-to-back losses be.”

Rhoden wrote. team uniforms and own stadiums. Black History “Organization is our equipment. As com- They fell to the same only hope — we have missioner, he settled opposition as Foster. However, Continued from Page 1 the players, and it could disputes, and he sent various Negro leagues sprang up not be a failure, as the his own players from throughout the 1940s and finally Unlike Jackie Robinson, same territory is trav- his Chicago Giants to died out in the 1960s, but none his goal wasn’t to become the eled now by all clubs, weaker teams to keep accomplished what Foster did. first Black in a White-defined with no organization or the league competi- Civil rights activist Audley league. His goal was creation of money,” Foster wrote in tive. He made a lot of “Queen Mother” Moore ex- a professional baseball league the Indianapolis Free- money by getting a pressed regret for fighting to owned, organized, managed and man newspaper. percentage of the gross integrate individual players and played by African-Americans, Foster called a meet- of each gate, but he not whole teams into the Major Rhoden wrote. ing of the Black owners poured money into un- Leagues. Foster created baseball’s Ne- of the eight strongest stable franchises and gro National League in 1920. teams to Kansas City. guaranteed hotel bills That marked one of the last times They formed the Negro for teams stranded on that Blacks controlled and owned league. Foster did not the road. “Organization is a major-league sports organiza- want any White own- In 1926, Foster our only hope...” tion. ers, but J.L. Wilkinson, negotiated with “It would be a crime for owner of the Kansas American League the Negro, who has such an City Monarchs, was File Photo President Ban Johnson “When our teams played in abundance of talent in such a admitted as part of the Rube Foster and New York the communities throughout the progressive age, to sit idly by and nine-team founding Yankees Manager country, our communities were see his race forever doomed to group. (ELCB ) offered to buy Foster out. John McGraw for his team to ablaze with activity — our ho- America’s greatest and foremost Before Foster, Black teams The ELCB offered Foster a team play their squads when they tels, we had hotels and all, we sport,” Foster once wrote. were just traveling and playing of his own and the opportunity visited Chicago. But, the Major used to have taxis, shoeshine Foster was a star pitcher, a hit-or-miss exhibition games, lo- to play in a $100,000 stadium if League commissioner killed the boys, old women selling candies manager and a team owner who cal neighborhood teams or White he came to their league. Foster idea. and peanuts and everything,” spearheaded a groundbreaking major leaguers looking to make turned down the offer and began This dealt a blow to Foster, said Moore. “Now you have a league. The fast pace of the Ne- extra money on the side, Rhoden booking games successfully, realizing his league would never Negro or 10 Negro or 20 Negroes gro league drew a cross-section noted. preventing the other leagues become a part of White baseball. there, but the White man gets all of fans attracted by the bunting, This circuit was known as from controlling all the big-time Foster suffered a nervous the gate.” the stealing of bases, the spikes- barnstorming and under that Black names in baseball. breakdown and died at age 51. Foster stood on principle, first slides and the circus-like tradition, Whites were the sole The league began to blossom Without the vision of Foster, Rhoden noted. He had the catches. controlling booking agents. The with each city having a team to the league died in 1932. opportunity to leave Black Foster envisioned a well-run Negro league helped break the cheer for, players to identify with, Gus Greenlee formed his Ne- baseball for the majors, but he and competitive league when it agents’ strong hold. and a pennant race to follow. gro Baseball League in 1933. He wanted to take whole teams and was time to negotiate with the As word spread about the Foster was the league’s great- and Alex Pompez, the owner of owners with him. But, even to major leagues, because he knew league, the White-run Eastern est strength but also its weak- the New York Black Yankees, this day, there’s no Black owner that integration was inevitable, League of Colored Baseball ness, Rhoden wrote. He ordered were the only owners of their of a major league baseball team. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 11 Celebrating the unknown accomplishments of Ali, Foster and other Black Americans

lished the label. Its claim to Historic Black fame was Ethel Waters’ hit, Down Home Blues/Oh, Daddy. American’s In 1963, Ebony Magazine named Jeanne Noble, author first of The Negro Woman’s Col- lege Education, one of the achievements most influential Negros of the Emancipation Centennial Year. The accomplishments of Yvonne Braithwaite Burke African-Americans like Mar- became the first Black woman tin Luther King and Malcolm elected to the California As- X are well known, but history sembly in 1967. records many African-Ameri- The first Black California cans who also contributed to Supreme Court justice was the progress of Black people Wiley E. Manuel in 1977. in America. Their stories are Clarence Page became the rarely read or celebrated. first Black columnist awarded Here are some examples a Pulitzer Prize in 1989. from three sources detailing In 1991, Siraj Wahaj became Black history: the first Muslim to give an James Durham overcame invocation in the U.S. House being born a slave to become Representatives. By Louise Dahl-Wolfe– Archives of American Art the first American Black phy- Sources: 1999 Facts about In 1937 William Edmondson became the first Black sician in 1783. Blacks, 2nd edition by Ray- artist featured in a solo exhibit at New York’s Museum In 1800, Gabriel Prosser led mond M. Corbin; Black-Firsts, of Modern Art from Oct. 20 to Dec. 12, 1937.

an attempted revolt of 1,000 2nd Edition by Jessie Carney Courtesy of thehistorymakers.com slaves in Richmond, Va. Smith; A History of Racial In- Jenny R. Patrick-Yeboah became the first In 1921, the Pace Phono- justice, 2016 Calendar by The American Black woman to earn a doctorate in graph Company became the Equal Justice. chemical engineering in either 1979 or 1981, first Black-owned record —Marcus Henderson & depending on which source is correct. company. Harry Pace estab- Rahsaan Thomas

Courtesy of archpaper.com

By blackpost.org Courtesy of classyblackgirl.com In 1954, Norma Merrick Skiarek became New York State’s first Black woman registered as an architect. She also be- Clarence Page became the first Black In 1990, Carole Gist became the first came California’s first Black licensed architect in 1962. columnist awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1989. African-American crowned Miss USA.

File Photo The first Black photojournalist was Gordon A. Parks Sr. in 1949. He worked for Life magazine. Courtesy of Black Fives Foundation Parks also became the first Black to direct The New York Renaissance has the distinction of becoming the first Black pro basketball team in movies for a major movie studio, including the 1923. The team disbanded in 1948 after a segregated NBA denied them admission. movie Shaft, starring Richard Roundtree. Page 12 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com March 2017

Bev Shelby at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington D.C.

Yukari Kane

at the Courtesy of Bev Shelby Norauank Monastery in Armenia built in the 13th century Courtesy of Yukari Kane Yukari Courtesy of

Drawings by Paul Irish Kirwn Pencil drawing of Jimi Hendrix and James Hetfield of Metallica March 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 13 WORDCROSS PUZZLE By Jonathan Chiu / Edited by Jan Perry

Across 78. Give satisfaction for an injury 1. As a matter of... 79. District representative (Abbrev.) Snippets 5. What you open at a bar 80. Dorsal portion of an insect (Pl) 8. Without (L) ullet ants inflict the 12. Locale inside Parc National Down most painful sting De La Pendjar in West Africa 1. Delightful (Abbrev.) B 13. Cool beers 2. City in WC Iran in the world. The throb- 16. You can run this way 3. Mystery board game bing, burning waves of 17. Author of the Oz books 4. Comic and star of Last Man Standing pain from its paralyzing 18. College football Ducks locale 5. Dinosaur and lung killer 19. Austin Powers’ ____-Me 6. Fine wine and cheese are this venom last for longer 20. Key and Peele 2016 movie about a cat 7. Sire than 24 hours. 22. Beavis and Butthead 8. Full Frontal with ______Bee Do America’s Moore 9. British writer Kingsley arth is an oblate 23. Type of beverage jar 10. Forbidden 24. Clark’s love interest 11. You can get under someone’s Espheroid–meaning 26. Movie that made everyone 13. Comic C.K. it’s roundish, but bulges want to be a fighter pilot 14. Cowboy’s second string QB in the center, at the 28. A type of celeb 15. Metal shears 29. Kind 21. Guy of Garrison Keillor’s equator. This is due to 30. Locale on the Indian/Pakistan A Prairie Home Companion the centrifugal force of border west of New Dehli 23. Comic Eddie of Life Earth’s rotation. 32. Anne Kirkpatrick is the 25. NBC comedy Super_____ Chief of this Dept. (Abbrev.) 27. Douchey facial hair 35. One of a widespread genus 28. National Lampoon’s _____ House eaded gasoline was 38. Pulau ____: island on the 30. What you can get stuck in Lphased out from Singapore/Malaysia border 31. What a bad comic can be 1993 and banned in 39. Comic Robinson and a star of The Office on stage (2 words) 41. Scottish chief land owner 33. Animal hands 1995. However, fuel 42. A male turkey 34. Hazardous situations L containing lead may 43. Comic and host of The Price Is Right 36. Bergman of Casablanca A continue to be sold for 45. Nutritional supplement store (Abbrev.) 37. Common greeting in Mexico S 47. Obama’s daughter 39. Rock formation of the Earth’s crust T off-road uses, including 49. Transition without break 40. Superbowl’s Lady aircraft, racing cars, 50. When doubled, the name 43. UAE’s monetary unit M farm equipment and of indie band with the album Details 44. Little kids (Slang) O marine engines. 51. Paul _____: Mall Cop 46. Cattle’s stomach content N 52. ___ can cook 48. Co-star of 23 down in Life T 53. Al who parody songs 50. Comic Craig and co-star of 43 H t takes about 540 54. A notable of ____ who across’ ‘90s sitcom ’ peanuts to make a 56. 23 Down’s movie Shrek the _____ 53. Gone With the ____ I 58. City in S. Bihar, NE India 55. A young cod or haddock S 12-ounce jar of peanut 61. Precedes list, bird or fest 57. An enormous crowd butter. 62. Witchy town 59. Airplane alternative (Abbrev.) A 65. Common computer go to 60. Menzel of Frozen N ach human hand 67. Cartoon Network’s _____ Swim 62. Ed Sheeran song S has 29 major joints 70. Image 63. LA resident necessity (2 words) W E 71. Last Week Tonight with John 64. Myth E (give or take a few), 73. Young of Ace Ventura 66. Best shape for an office R 123 ligaments, 48 75. Undercover drug cop (Slang) 68. Comic who collects cars S 76. Atlanta star and Childish 69. No slack nerves, and 30 arteries. Gambino’s Glover 72. Ancient times Correction to last month’s puzzle for following Down clues: 55 is 54, 57 is 56, 61 is 60, 62 is 61, 77. Burden of proof 74. Eavesdropping agency 64 is 63, 65 is 64, 66 is 65, 67 is 66, 69 is 68, 70 is 69, 72 is 71 and 73 is 72.

Last Issue’s Sudoku The Month of February Solutions • February is the only month in a year that does not have a fixed number Sudoku Corner of days. All other months have either thirty (30) or thirty-one (31) days. • February generally has twenty-eight (28) days, but every four years, 8 3 6 7 2 9 4 5 1 during “leap year,” has twenty-nine (29) days. Unlike all other months in 8 9 6 1 7 1 4 6 5 3 2 8 9 2017, February has four of each day of the week. 9 5 2 4 1 8 6 7 3 • Groundhog Day is on Thursday, Feb. 2. There will be a full moon on 7 1 8 4 1 8 5 2 9 7 3 4 6 Friday, Feb. 10. Saint Valentine’s Day is on Tuesday, Feb. 14, and Presi- 6 4 9 8 3 1 5 2 7 dent’s Day is on Monday, Feb. 20. 6 3 1 8 3 2 7 5 4 6 9 1 8 • For Christians, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord is on Thursday, 2 9 3 1 8 5 7 6 4 Feb. 2, and the Memorial of Saint Blaise is on Friday, Feb. 3. For East- 5 2 4 7 8 9 6 2 1 3 5 ern Orthodox Christians, Lent begins on Monday, Feb. 27. 5 6 1 3 7 4 8 9 2 • For Canadian Nationals, Family Day is celebrated in British Columbia on Monday, Feb. 13, and for the rest of Canada, on Monday, Feb. 20. 2 6 • For Mexican Nationals, Constitution Day is on Monday, Feb. 6, and Flag 1 3 9 5 2 6 4 8 7 Day is on Friday, Feb. 24. 9 2 8 6 4 3 7 9 1 2 5 • According to the World Almanac, February is Black History Month, 5 2 7 1 4 8 6 9 3 American Heart Month, Library Lovers Month, Youth Leadership Month, 4 5 1 6 8 3 9 7 2 and Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket Month. 5 2 1 6 2 8 6 7 9 1 5 3 4 • There are two astrological signs in February: Aquarius, the sign of the 7 9 3 4 5 2 8 1 6 Water Bearer (Jan. 20 to Feb. 18) and Pisces, the sign of the Fishes 3 7 2 5 3 4 8 2 1 5 7 6 9 (Feb. 19 to March 20). 9 7 2 8 6 4 3 5 1 • According to the Jewelry Industry Council, the February birthstone is 4 5 1 8 6 1 5 9 3 7 2 4 8 the Amethyst.

1 5 8 2 San Quentin News would like to know: What prison are you at and how do you receive the San Quentin News? 2 8 4 6 5 Does your library provide you with a copy of the San Quentin News? 7 1 Do all facilities/yards at your prison receive the San Quentin News? 4 9 6 8 1 4 What stories did you like the most and why? 8 1 4 9 What story did you like the least and why? What kind of story would you like to read? 9 5 2 8 1 7 6 Mail to: San Quentin News 1 Main Street 7 1 3 8 San Quentin, CA 94964 Page 14 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Estudio examina como los presos pueden mejores oportunidades ante el comité de audiencias

Por Wayne Boatwright a la libertad condicional. vida con posibilidad de liber- equivalente a un tercio de los pocos presos obtuvieron un re- Managing Editor Estas son excelentes noticias tad condicional. Estas senten- presos en los Estados Unidos sultado favorable por parte de para los presos que se encuen- cias “indeterminadas” eran con sentencias indefinidas (sen- los comisionados. Por décadas, los presos con tran en San Quentin con deseos catalogadas como vida, “tener tencia de vida con posibilidad El proceso requiere que la una sentencia de vida difícil- de regresar a casa. Solo necesi- una sentencia de vida significa de libertad condicional). Entre Comisión de Audiencias (BPH) mente obtenían su libertad tan aprovechar estos cambios. que podrías pasar el resto de tu estos empleados 12 son comis- considere 15 factores enumera- condicional. Actualmente, más En el primero de tres artícu- vida en la prisión” porque úni- ionados asignados por el gober- dos en el Código de Regula- del 20% están siendo liberados. los, los cuales están basados en camente muy pocos presos con nador y un poco mas de 30 de ciones de California (CCR), ti- Todo esto gracias a los cambios un nuevo estudio por la Univer- estas sentencias eran hallados ellos son comisionados de ser- tulo 15, 2402 (a). Seis factores a nivel legal, ejecutivo, y ad- sidad de Stanford, publicados elegibles. Las razones por las vicio civil. Cada audiencia es se refieren a las razones por la ministrativo. en el Federal Sentencing Re- cuales se les negaba su libertad presidida por un comisionado cuales se les niega la libertad La aprobación de la porter (Stanford Report) en el no eran claras; y esto se debe de gobierno y un comisionado al preso. Estos factores incluy- proposición 57 en Noviembre mes de Abril del 2016 , tendre- a que “la comunidad no tiene civil. en: crímenes muy crueles, un del 2016, permitirá que muchos mos la oportunidad de observar idea” de como funciona el pro- Antes de la audiencia, la historial de mucha violencia, prisioneros tengan acceso a la como funciona el sistema. ceso para determinar la elegi- administración de la prisión problemas psicológicos, mal libertad condicional y que otros Actualmente existen aproxi- bilidad de un preso, informó de prepara un archivo para cada comportamiento dentro de la miles de presos puedan tener madamente 35,000 prisione- Stanford Report. uno de los comisionados. Este institución, historial previo de una audiencia ante un comité ros en el sistema carcelario de Menos de 50 empleados esta- archivo incluye documentos violencia u ofensas sexuales (Board of Parole Hearings), California que se encuentran tales presiden la enorme carga relevantes que se encuentran sadísticas, y si carecen de un para determinar si son elegibles cumpliendo una sentencia de de audiencias. Esta carga es en el archivo central del preso plan al ser liberados. Los otros (C-File), y que contiene: un re- nueve factores restantes dem- sumen del crimen, el historial uestran la elegibilidad del preso criminal del preso, una evalu- y estos incluyen: evidencia que ación psicológica, un reporte muestren remordimiento por el Origen del Día del Amor y la Amistad del progreso obtenido posterior crimen, ausencia de un historial al encarcelamiento, y cualquier delictivo juvenil, y un historial Por Marco Villa y emperador. jóvenes enamorados, en contra decisión de audiencias anteri- social estable. Taré Beltranchuc San Valentín fue llamado a del decreto del Emperador Ro- ores. El porcentaje de elegibili- comparecer ante el emperador, mano Claudio II. Los presos con una senten- dad para presos con sentencias El 14 de Febrero, a pesar de quien aprovecho esta oportuni- En memoria de San Valentín, cia indeterminada tienen su indefinidas ha incrementado ser una fecha muy anhelada y dad para tratar de convertir al la gente empezó a conmemorar audiencia inicial un año antes dramáticamente de un 8% en popular entre las parejas, muy emperador al cristianismo. Sin cada 14 de Febrero como el Día de su fecha potencial de salida el año 2008 a un 30% en el pocos conocen la historia de embargo, lejos de convencer al de los Enamorados, pero fue mínima. 2015. El aumento se debe a esta tradición. Esta celebración emperador, éste decide mandar hasta el año 496 que el Papa Con la excepción de dos or- que la Comisión de Audiencias es conocida como el Día de los al oficial Asterius ha arrestarlo Gelasius instauro el 14 de Fe- denes de la Suprema Corte de (BPH) ha “encontrado elegibles Enamorados, el Día del Amor y castigarlo brero como el Día de San Va- California en el 2008, práctica- a más presos”. A pesar de que y la Amistad, o como el Día de Posteriormente el emperador lentín. mente ningún preso era encon- el gobernador revocó la liber- San Valentín. intento burlarse de la religión Con el paso del tiempo, esta trado elegible para ser puesto tad a una quinta parte de estos San Valentín fue un medico de San Valentín (cristianismo) festividad empezó a ganar pop- en libertad. Entre los años de presos, casi el 25% de aquellos Romano bondadoso que de- poniéndolo a prueba al pedirle ularidad en países como Fran- 1979 y 2007, los comisionados presos que tuvieron una audien- cidió hacerse cristiano y orde- que le devolviera la vista a Ju- cia, Alemania e Italia. Para el encontraron elegibles a menos cia en el 2015 ganaron su liber- narse como sacerdote alred- lia, una de las hijas de Asterius, año 1842, Esther Ángel How- del 3% de los presos. Sin em- tad condicional. edor del siglo III. Durante esta quien era ciega de nacimiento. land, comenzó a vender las bargo, la mayoría de estas de- En los próximos artículos época se prohibía el matrimo- Afortunadamente para Aste- primeras tarjetas de San Va- cisiones fueron revertidas por consideraremos como se lleva a nio entre soldados ya que se rius, el Dios de San Valentín lentín en América en forma de el Gobernador de California, cabo la decisión de elegibilidad, creía que los hombres solteros milagrosamente le devolvió la corazón o Cupido, mejor cono- según el Stanford Report. las características de la audien- rendían más en el campo de vista a su hija. A pesar de este cidas como “valentines”. La Comisión de Audiencias cia y las variables que tienen un batalla. milagro, San Valentín fue de- Actualmente, en la ciudad (BPH) inicia la conferencia con gran impacto estadístico sobre No obstante, San Valentín capitado por órdenes del em- italiana de Terni, existe una la opinión legal de que un pre- las probabilidades de obtener la decidió ignorar el mandato del perador el 14 de Febrero del basílica que lleva el nombre so es elegible para obtener su libertad condicional. Emperador Claudio II y em- año 270. de San Valentín en honor a libertad condicional al menos Una copia del “Stanford Re- pezó a realizar matrimonios Sucesivamente, San Valentín éste sacerdote y cada 14 de Fe- que “al considerar la seguridad port” esta disponible a través de en secreto. La popularidad de fue hecho un santo por inter- brero, las parejas con deseos pública se requiera una periodo Patten University. San Valentín aumento signifi- venir en el milagro que le de- de contraer matrimonio al año extenso de encarcelamiento” –Traducción por cativamente al grado que la volvió la vista a la hija de As- siguiente asisten a esta basílica (Código Penal de California Marco Villa y información llego a oídos del terius y por su valentía al casar a formalizar su compromiso. 401 (b)). A pesar de eso, muy Taré Beltranchuc

El ‘Proyect Rebound’ ayuda a ex-convictos a obtener educación universitaria

Por Forrest Lee Jones que los hombres y mujeres que nes, crear una cuenta de correo por una persona que no fuera do que la misión y las metas del Journalism Guild Writer participan en este programa electrónico para los estudiantes, ex-convicta. Joseph Miles, un PR dan mejor resultado con un tienen “resistencia psicológica.” enseñar a los estudiantes a poner estudiante ex-convicto quien líder que ha estado encarcelado. El programa Project Rebound Bell es un ex-convicto que pasó su trabajo en la red y ofrecerles cursa su último año de estudio Curtis Penn, un ex-prisionero (PR) con base en la Universidad sus años veintes en prisión por bonos para comida, dinero para en el programa PR, está en de- de San Quentin y el nuevo di- San Francisco State, tiene una un intento de muerte, de acu- transporte, libros, y hospedaje. sacuerdo. rector del PR, añadió, “cuando tasa de éxito impresionante, erdo al reporte. Durante el periodo de Bell Miles comenta, “no hay for- recibimos cartas de hombres y reportó Emily DeRuy del The Bell tuvo dificultad para grad- como director, más de 140 es- ma de reemplazar esa experi- mujeres que se encuentran tras Atlantic;y esta ayudando a ex- uarse de la preparatoria (High tudiantes se graduaron por me- encia (la encarcelación)”. Los las rejas y están interesados en convictos a obtener educación School). Y durante su encar- dio del PR. Estos números están estudiantes tienen más confi- alcanzar niveles más altos de universitaria. celamiento continuó con su edu- propensos a seguir creciendo, ya anza cuando los encargados educación, actuamos con ur- El programa fue iniciado en cación hasta adquirir el diploma que, actualmente, Bell esta ex- del programa conocen lo que gencia y empatía, como si estu- 1967 por un ex-convicto y un de la preparatoria. Bell no se de- pandiendo el programa a otros los estudiantes han vivido. Es viéramos en su lugar y ellos en profesor de sociología llamado, tuvo y siguió con su educación, siete colegios en el sistema de la muy importante que los estudi- el lugar de nosotros”. John Irwin, comentó DeRuy. obteniendo 25 créditos de la Universidad del Estado de Cali- antes observen a personas, con No obstante, Bell cree que el La ideología de Irwin era que Universidad de Ohio. Al con- fornia. pasados similares a los de ellos, programa tendrá éxito a pesar de cuando los ex-convictos ob- seguir su libertad condicional De acuerdo a los oficiales de para obtener sus títulos univer- cualquier adversidad. tienen un titulo universitario, transfirió sus créditos a la Uni- la Universidad del Estado de sitarios, tener éxito en la vida, Cuando a los prisioneros se las posibilidades de regresar a versidad de San Francisco State, San Francisco, la expansión está y motivarlos a continuar con su les ofrece una oportunidad de prisión disminuyen. donde obtuvo su licenciatura y diseñada para ayudar a reducir educación. ` acceso al colegio, Bell men- El estudio también muestra maestría. Finalmente, llegó a ser el índice de reincidencia en Cal- Miles estuvo en prisión por ciona que “las personas hacen un gran contraste en el índice de presidente del PR. “Reconocí ifornia (44.6%).Un estudio en el venta de narcóticos a finales de fila alrededor de la yarda”. La graduaciones entre los estudi- como la educación había cam- 2010 demostró que solamente sus años veintes y principios de oportunidad para obtener un ti- antes del PR y los estudiantes de biado mi vida y no quería que un 3% de los participantes de los treintas. Miles mencionó que tulo después de salir en libertad la universidad: el 90% de los es- se terminara”, menciono Bell PR volvieron a cometer un cri- el programa le ayudó porque, condicional es el paso lógico a tudiantes del PR se graduaron, refiriéndose a su sucesor, John men, expreso DeRuy. “había compañerismo”. Después seguir. en comparación del 50% de los Irwin. A pesar de que la Universidad de la visita de DeRuy, un vocero “Es como un nuevo inicio,” estudiantes universitarios, in- La función de Bell y su per- de San Francisco State apoya el de la Universidad de San Fran- expresa Bell. dica el reporte. sonal consiste en responder programa, algunos estudiantes cisco State, Miles expresó en un –Traducción por Jason Bell, quien llegó a ser la correspondencia de los pri- creen que este programa tendría correo electrónico que el direc- Marco Villa y director del PR en el 2005, dice sioneros, procesar las aplicacio- más éxito si estuviera dirigido tor de la escuela siempre ha creí- Taré Beltranchuc February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 15 PUP’s big open-mic night winds up its year

By Juan Haines was inspired after his mentor told Senior Editor him he does not have what it takes to be a grandmaster in chess. Teachers and aides with the Eusebio Gonzalez read Culture Prison University Project, at San Tradition. It was about the pain Quentin, along with inmates of witnessing domestic violence and prison staffers, roared with as a teenager. The 31-year-old laughter on Dec. 30 to a sing- Mexican National said he was along spoof of the Twelve Days of deeply affected by the violence Christmas by Alex Brigg. his grandmother endured from The parody made fun of po- his grandfather. With Greg Dix- lice harassment as the audience on’s keyboard in the background, chimed in with, “On the Fifth Gonzalez spoke about the nega- Day of Christmas, the police tive and controlling impact of brought to me, five DUIs.” machismo, which still exists. He The event was part of an an- dedicated his performance to his nual open-mic of comedy, poetry, grandmother, after finding out spoken word and musical perfor- the day before that she passed mances by inmates enrolled in Photo by Eddie Herena San Quentin News away in 2014. Richard Lathan’s the prison’s college. More than Michael Vick reading “Vanguard of the Oppressed” to a packed house Unnamed Piece honored all the 150 people enjoyed the show. victims of violence. “I heard about San Quentin body’s Watching Me with I Feel Kevin D. Sawyer read three on bass and Dwight Krizman Fateen Jackson’s spoken word, way before I got here,” Brigg said Like Inmates Are Stalking Me. poems expressing the impor- on drums accompanying. They Mission for Redemption, is a in the Protestant Chapel. “San A song that joked about inmates tance of keeping one’s identity, dedicated the performance to the spiritual journey for correcting Quentin has a culture. For a pris- following him, snitching on him no matter what is happening in spirit of San Quentin. his life mistakes that caused harm oner getting here is like a dream and then being sent to the hole. life. Sawyer’s poetry articulates In honor of winter solace, to his community and family. come true, which is an odd thing Other performances touched a passionate viewpoint criticiz- Gregory Coates played a home- Andrew Gazzeny read a poem, for someone incarcerated to say. upon recent politics and social ing the practice of incarcerating coming song on the wood flute. Your Attention Please. He spoke It’s because here we have a voice, issues. individuals for many years — a Elton Mings read In Holiday passionately about the comfort- unlike other prisons. For me, Eddie DeWeaver said he’s suf- practice that ultimately oppresses Style. The poem is about the fes- ing effect of being listened to that’s important because my fam- fering from PTED — Post Trau- the human spirit, he said. tivities enjoyed around the holi- and the sadness that comes from ily gets to see me in a way they’ve matic Election Disorder. He said Jesse James Smith rapped I day season in the free world that being rejected. “Your silence is never seen me.” the best medicine for his ailment Need You. In the rap, Smith ad- are envied by the incarcerated. death to me,” Gazzeny said. “I Aaron “Showtime” Taylor, an is laughter and proceeded to tell mitted to the damaging effects A. Kevin Valvardi read two have more to say, always.” inmate, sang the chorus lines for a series of corny jokes, such as, of the streets and, in prison, how poems, Chapel Gardens and To Closing the night out was Upu- Brigg’s routine. “What vegetable has impeccable much a father’s love and God are the USA and Its Allies. moni Ama, who played a ukulele In an earlier performance, Tay- rhyme?” needed. Emile DeWeaver read two po- donated by Zak Williams, the lor sang his own spoofs, while “Beets.” Comedy performances making ems. Broken News made light of son of Robin Williams, while he playing guitar. Antwan “Banks” Williams fun of common phrases and slang news delivery. Comic reflected sang Nothing Compares to You. Instead of The Thrill Is Gone, and Lemar “Maverick” Harrison had the audience laughing. on the honesty of inmates during Ama dedicated the performance Taylor sang My Grill Is Gone. performed Kneel with Me. They Robert Barnes’ stand-up piece parole hearings. to Williams and “the late great Then, after making clear he is said it was inspired by 49ers — Really!?! Yeah ... No! — joked Michael Vick read Vanguard artist formerly known as Prince.” Muslim, made fun of Islamic di- quarterback Colin Kaepernick about casual phrases such as I of the Oppressed. One person As Robert “Belize” Villafran- etary beliefs by singing, “I want kneeling during the national an- know, I’m just saying, Let me who cares about the community co’s congas beat away, the audi- to eat fried bologna sandwiches.” them before each football game be completely honest and Right? could make a difference, Vick ence danced out of the chapel, He finished by spoofing Some- as a protest against the treatment “What bothers me is when I’m in contends. “I am a loyal and re- smiling. of minorities in the middle of a heavy conversa- sponsible person,” America. tion and someone says, ‘Let me he read. “I dream Some acts fo- be completely honest,’” Barnes of not having to cused on how hard joked. “Well, how am I supposed dream about my it is to be incarcer- to take that? You mean all up un- dreams, hopes and ated. til now, you’ve been dishonest?” desires.” Micheal Cooke Jonathan Chiu had the audi- George “Mesro” read No Hardship ence moaning with laughter at Coles-El did a spo- Lasts Forever. It his political incorrectness as ken-word version underlined the he poked fun at Asian stereo- of Rocket Man that cost of accepting types: bad driving, good in math was inspired by an criminal thinking and suitable only to working in episode of Family while incarcer- sweatshops. Guy. ated. Cooke never Heads in the audience were Keith Wroten succumbed to the bobbing to the musical perfor- took the stage pressures of the mances, several receiving stand- wearing a bandana “wretched situa- ing ovations. and spoke how he Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News tion” and believes Lee Jaspar wrote Krya. He could conquer and Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Robert Barnes performing there is always played the original jazzy tune dominate a world. Alex Briggs performing the “Twelve “Really!?! Yeah ... No!” hope. on keyboard with Greg Dixon He said the piece Days of Christmas” Kwanzaa celebration offers solutions for the community By Emile DeWeaver Each fulfilled opportunity played guitar, accompanied Next, Gino Sevacos joined with their community work. Staff Writer exemplified Kwanzaa’s third by Lee “Jazz” Jaspar on the Conga drum. Sevacos later “I need all you brothers principle: Ujima, or collective keyboard. Jaspar had never played an African rainforest and we all need each other,” The timing of Kwanzaa’s work and responsibility. heard Shalhoub’s songs, but he solo. Washington said. “That’s my 50th anniversary celebration in “I came to support my friend embodied the sixth principle — “I loved it. It made me happy,” gift to you and you are my gift San Quentin was apt because (Darnell “Moe” Washington) creativity — by improvising his Shalhoub said. With Krizman, to me.” the event happened on the and the idea of unity,” one of the accompaniment. Jaspar, and Sevacos being The following are the seven third night of Kwanzaa when attendees, Bruce Engleton, said. Shalhoub’s performance White, the impromptu band principles of Kwanzaa: communities come together to Robert “Belize” Villafranco also turned into an exercise epitomized a point Shalhoub • Umoja/Unity share and solve problems. sang a Bemba Soul Song as he in Kwanzaa’s first principle, made that unity wasn’t about • Kujichagulia/Self- More than 100 men attended beat a drum between his legs. Umoja or unity, when men being the same, but about Determination the event, which was hosted by The song illuminated Bemba were so moved by the music coming together. • Ujima/Collective Work Darnell “Moe” Washington. birth rituals, rites of passage, that they joined the musicians John Grain, attending his and Responsibility The celebration featured and death rites. Villafranco said on stage. Dwight Krizman second Kwanzaa celebration • Ujamaa/Cooperative music, spoken word poetry and that the piece was restorative joined Shalhoub during her at San Quentin, said that he Economics impromptu speeches about the because the song can help first song, adding his drum enjoyed the celebration. “Your • Nia/Purpose seven principles of Kwanzaa. African-Americans restore accompaniment. heart has to be open to all faiths • Kuumba/Creativity Many of the men used the familial and community When Shalhoub sang about and all races,” he said. • Imani/Faith opportunity to share the problem relationships by reconnecting a man struggling to rise from At the end, Washington led the Webster’s New College of not being able to be with their with their roots. “a street corner next to a house evening to a close by honoring Dictionary defines Kwanzaa as families for the holidays, and The night’s highlight was a that’s got it all,” Leonard “Funky Kwanzaa’s seventh principle: an African-American cultural they leaned on each other to performance by outside guest Len” Walker joined the growing faith in people. He praised two festival observed from Dec. 26- be that family for one another. Naima Shalhoub, who sang and ensemble with a bass guitar. dozen men in the audience for Jan. 1. Page 16 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 Brown Is The New White makes book of the year

the Democratic Party ignor- I was 20, Tina Seelig (2011) last comfortable while living Book Review ing issues relevant to the New year was full of enjoyable, seri- in a perpetual state of American Majority. His facts ous and sobering reviews. war. The Red Badge of By Juan Haines show they stayed home and did An interesting aspect of 2016 Courage, Stephen Crane Senior Editor not vote, which they also did in book reviews is relating the au- (1895) looked into war 2016, and that pointedly affect- thor’s plot or storyline to the ex- and its morality, while A There is a book I read, but ed the elections. perience of being imprisoned. Long Way Gone: Mem- Barack Obama and Hillary “America has a progressive, There were a group of books oirs of a Boy Soldier, Clinton did not. If they had read multiracial majority right now that directly addressed incar- Ishmael Beah (2007) Brown is the New White, Steve that has the power to elect presi- ceration. gave a first-hand account Phillips (2016) and had taken dents and reshape American Toxic Schools, Bowen Paulle of war’s cruelty. its advice, I believe Democrats politics, policies, and priorities (2013) studied the interactions Several authors, who would be holding both houses of for decades to come,” Philips between at-risk children and have ventured inside this Congress and the presidency in wrote. “Progressive people of teachers. Paulle addressed ways prison, have had their 2017. color now comprise 23 per- to keep kids in schools and out books reviewed by the Phillips accurately pointed cent of all the eligible voters of prison. Zek: An American San Quentin News. One out some solid historical facts in America, and progressive Prison Story, Arthur Long- author, Tommy Winfrey, about why Progressives failed Whites account for 28 percent worth (2016) gave an honest resides here. by not paying attention to who of all eligible voters. Together, look at what could happen to a Winfrey won first matters the most in elections– these constituencies make up 51 dropout. The newsletter, Fire place in a prestigious people rather than abstract percent of the country’s citizen Inside, gave a women’s side on writing contest for Stray issues. voting age population, and that incarceration. (2015). His touching One of the most striking majority is getting bigger every Then there were the books on story about the love be- claims in Brown is the New single day.” war. tween a boy and his dog shows teaches poetry at San Quentin. White are the facts it uses to Therefore, my vote for best The politics of war was an the insight, transformation and Rosemary Jenkins made an im- show how the Democrats lost book of 2016 is the one that, if interesting topic in Johnny resilience of the human soul. pact on San Quentin News read- the U.S. House of Representa- heeded, would have changed the Got His Gun, Dalton Trumbo Author Tobias Wolff visited ers with Leticia in Her Wedding tives in 2010 and subsequently national picture we see today. (1939). It took readers inside San Quentin’s creative writing Dress and Others (2005). lost the Senate in 2014. Phil- While the best book in 2015 the mind of the wounded war- class. He discussed the com- Ready Player One, Ernest ips attributes both losses to was What I Wish I Knew When rior. Trumbo questions a society monalities found in his short Cline (2011) is about the world story, The Chain. Wolff’s con- of gamers. Incarcerated read- versation with the inmates cen- ers, who have never accessed tered on the nature of retaliation the internet or played with so- and revenge found in The Chain cial media, enjoyed Cline’s hero Alliance for Change grads learn that were similar to criminal journey. thinking and its consequences. As I look forward to the 2017 Jennifer Richter also visited book reviews, I believe that the social justice for the community the creative writing class and lessons of Brown is the New shared her poetry from No Acute White are still available, and if By Rahsaan Thomas living organism that should youngsters in handball. Distress, (2016). Julien Poirier, taken seriously could get Demo- Staff Writer lead to the fair and righteous Davis mentioned that prior author of Out of Print (2016), crats back on track. treatment of all human beings. to taking Alliance, all he knew Several men, ranging from 23 He advised the graduates that was street justice. years old to great-grandfathers, sacrifice and compromise were Roman said, “I will try to were honored at the Alliance necessary to achieve change. convince people I hang out with for Change graduation for Alliance Vice-President to take this class. I would like to Exciting experiences completing the rehabilitative Troy Phillips calls the four- thank Raheem. He said I would course that taught them how to days-a-week, 16-week course learn a lot here.” for the palate achieve social justice for their “rigorous. You miss more than Branden Riddle-Terrell said, communities. two days without a legitimate “This helped get me back on chicken in 35 years. It has to be “This is the dopest class excuse you may be excused track of wanting to help people. Asked On The Line cooked crisp and golden with ever,” said graduate Phillip from the program. We want the You facilitators helped us in a salt and pepper. I would also like Kelly. “When I go out to my guys to be accountable.” fun way. I want to get out there By Angelo Falcone to learn to speak British English community, I look to build and help communities too.” Journalism Guild Writer like people speak in Great Brit- it up and procedural justice For a few alumni who ain.” taught me how to do that. If “This class support the group in mentor A popular social activity on V. Nguyen: “I would like to they kill me in the process it and facilitator roles, the Jan. Valentine’s Day is the romantic try Japanese food like sushi will be worth it if I change one taught me ways 4 Alliance graduation will dinner. Introducing our palates and tempura and I would like to life.” be their last because they are to new and exotic foods can be learn to speak Japanese, too.” Alliance for Change has a to fight injustice scheduled to parole. Cleo fun and make a lasting impres- M. Angulo: “I would like to social justice mission. The peacefully” Cloman said he paroles five sion. For many, fast food or be- try real, homemade menudo and program focuses on teaching months later. Sam Johnson was ing cheap is not an option — es- I would like to learn to speak seven different kinds of jus- scheduled to parole in 2017. pecially if it’s a first date. Many French.” tice — Restorative, Procedur- As facilitator Marty Walters “I learned a lot about individuals brush up on a for- M. Morales: “I would like to al, Distributive, Transitional, gave out certificates enclosed restorative justice and that’s eign language to impress their try deer meat and learn to speak Transformative, Community in a fancy blue binder, he told what I want to give society — dates as they order at a fancy, Chinese.” and Social. Alliance examines the graduates, “Each person the true me,” said Johnson. exotic restaurant. Others may M. Benitez: “I would like to these forms of social justice must say something they After the graduation, opt to cook an exotic dish for try seafood, all types of sea- and educates the men in ways learned about the program and Nathanial Moore, an Alliance their dates at home and serve it food, and I would like to learn to of achieving social harmony in something positive they learned sponsor since 2011, remarked, by candlelight. speak a language called Mien.” their communities. about the next man.” “I always learn a ton from you “Asked On The Line” asked A. Torres: “I would like to try Graduate Brandon Hidalgo, The responses ranged from folks and it’s a privilege to some of the men on the main- a New York steak with a baked 23, said, “This class was really inspiring to hilarious. be able to take it outside. ... line, “If you could try, or learn potato and garlic bread. I would good because of all the wisdom Hidalgo, who doesn’t need to What you’re doing is pretty to cook, a new type of food that like to learn to speak French.or and experience from older guys take a self-help group in order important.” you have not tried before, what Italian.” and ambition and new ideas to parole, said he enrolled in would it be? If you could learn P. Feliciano: “I would like to from the younger generation.” Alliance because he wanted to Graduates a foreign language, what would try real Italian food and learn to Sponsor Mana Jaundoo use his time for education. Now it be?” speak Italian or French.” added, “Every cycle keeps me he plans to use what he learned N. Andino: “I would like to M. Saldana: “I would like to • David Worthington inspired to continue to sponsor in his community. • Angel Villafan try food from India but would try food from any other coun- Alliance. For this cycle it was “This class taught me ways • Tith Ton like to learn to speak Chinese.” try except the USA and learn to watching the two generations to fight injustice peacefully,” • David Taylor B. Muro: “I would like to try speak German.” come together and seeing the Hidalgo said. “I believe there is • Don Spence eating a big, freshly caught fish R. Malo: “I would like to try growth that they achieved by a lot of injustice and hate crimes • Robert Seabock cooked on hot coals and served real, authentic Mexican food learning from, and with, each against illegal immigrants.” • Branden Riddle-Terrell with a shrimp cocktail. I would and learn to speak Spanish.” other.” Great-grandfather Charles • Ezequiel Roman also like to learn to speak Por- M. Lopez: “I would like to The Alliance graduation Marsaw said he wants to • Cordiare McDonald tuguese because I like Brazilian try any new dish that has ‘ca- opened with founding sponsor give what he learned to his • Charles Marsaw women.” marones’ and I would be inter- Karen Lovaas reading some grandkids so they don’t ever • Eric Crutcher G. Pureco: “I would really ested in learning how to speak • Cory Grant words from former Alliance come to prison. • Edgar Hatton like to try any Korean dish made Chinese.” President Isaiah “Raheem” Kenny Brydon joked, “You • Michael Davis with dog meat and I would like M. Velazquez: “I would like Thompson-Bonilla, who young whippersnappers were • Brandon Hidalgo to learn to speak Italian.” to try cooking white rice, sau- transferred to another prison. more mindful than I thought • Philippe Kelly M. Jones: “I would like to sages with jelly or jam together. Thompson-Bonilla wrote you would be.” The elderly • Tamon Halfin try ‘real’ fried chicken again Also, I would like to learn to about social justice being a man claims he can still beat the • Kenny Brydon because I haven’t had real fried speak French. February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 17 Veterans and Shakespeare converge to tell war stories

By Emile DeWeaver Staff Writer

A group of San Quentin veter- ans joined some Shakespearean actors to portray the traumas they endured in war. Recently, over 30 guests came into San Quentin as our nation’s former heroes performed ex- cerpts from their lives alongside Shakespearean actors. The vet- erans enacted their war traumas to show the cost of war on the country’s soul. “What we are talking about is the imprint each generation leaves on the next,” said Ron Self, the founder of Veterans Healing Veterans, the veterans’ support group that hosted the play. “Some call [the imprint] Photo by Eddie Herena San Quentin News generational trauma. As human Lesley Currier (second from left) along with veterans and beings, we pass the torch of war Shakespeare actors reenacting the protest of returning Vietnam veterans to our children.” The play, directed by Marin The audience didn’t seem to a symbolic posture and glid- who have fought for democracy had grenades strapped to her Shakespeare’s Lesley Currier, mind the low-tech production. ing offstage. In the next scene, and freedom, I felt transported body. was called The High Cost of The play shifted between emo- cheering actors morphed into into that family’s life. And then I “I’ve been one who’s always Freedom and portrayed the fam- tional scenes such as a military somber cast members who col- had to take a step back and real- concealed my emotions,” Stew- ily story of Joe, Manny, and Ju- “firefight,” a suicide bombing, lapsed, one by one, on center ize this wasn’t just a script. The art said. “But [talking] helps. It nior – a grandfather, father, and and a family’s effort to reconnect stage. wars that they’ve been in were relieves a lot of pain I had inside son who respectively served in with simple but effective chore- The inability to talk about “it” prisons, and now they’re telling me.” Pearl Harbor, Vietnam, and Iraq. ography. A notable example of – the unspoken trauma veterans their story from prison. There’s The veterans also spoke about The story was performed in these shifts came when Bernard pass on to their children and just so much unfairness that just unemployment, broken promises a room predominantly used for Werner hobbled onstage as Joe the fear and uncertainty their hit me.” and addiction. drug counseling and peer edu- returned home with a cane after wives carry like heavy burdens “I know what it’s like to be The play ended with a stand- cation programs. There were America’s victory in World War – emerged as a dominant theme spit on and talked bad about, and ing ovation, and audience mem- no PA systems and no lighting II. People cheered on both sides in the play. Juxtaposed against a all I ever did was follow orders.” bers mingled with the actors. apart from the fluorescent tubes of the stage as Joe’s son, played history of silence, stark mono- John Robb, a Vietnam veteran, Cast member Luisa Frasconi overhead and sunlight streaming by Caleb L. McClelland on his logues revealed the truths of said, “I know what it’s like to be said she would carry with her through east-facing windows. knees, barraged him with inno- veterans healing veterans in the spit on and talked bad about, and “the inner lives of veterans that The only stage props were two cent questions about war. present. all I ever did was follow orders.” we don’t see from the outside, water guns, chairs and the roll- “I can’t talk about it,” Joe said In one scene in a Vietnam His words echoed McClelland’s a glimpse of what veterans are ing screens that drug counselors to his son as each cast member jungle, McClelland performed a portrayal of a soldier returning carrying in their heart.” use for their clients’ privacy. echoed Joe’s words, striking monologue about feeling “bam- from war’s trauma only to be Frasconi recently starred in a boozled” by his coun- abused by the citizens for whom production of Othello with the try. Amid a “firefight,” he fought. first formerly incarcerated lead he ducked behind a Juan Carlos Meza played in a Marin Shakespeare play. chair and popped up Junior, an Iraq war veteran who “It’s so humanizing coming sporadically to deliver came home with a missing arm. in here,” she said. “There are all his monologue to the Like his father and grandfather, these people who are trying to audience. Junior refused to talk about the do their best to live their lives.” The scene might “individuality,” “dignity,” and At the end, Self, the Veterans have been exciting and “moral compass” he sacrificed Healing Veterans founder, asked energizing if it weren’t for his country. the audience, “With the inevi- for the realization that The play culminated when table emotional cost [of war on the men were not per- grandfather, father, and son fi- soldiers and their families], what forming fiction. Many nally come together to talk about does it take to change the es- were reliving the most the cost of war. Other veterans sence of a man?” traumatic moments in joined them onstage, provid- He continued, “We don’t have their lives. ing a window into a veterans’ the answer, but the fact that “I can’t breathe,” support group. Chris Marshall we’re addressing it [with the said Sandy Zuber, who talked about his tour in Nicara- play] is the start of a solution Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News attended the play. “Lis- gua. Norfleet “Cadillac” Stewart because we’re thinking about it. Homecoming scene of injured WWII veteran tening to the experi- talked about shooting a 4-year- All solutions begin with think- meeting his son and wife ences of the soldiers old girl in Vietnam because she ing about them.” Study explores lifers going before the parole board

By Wayne Boatwright differs significantly from other re Lawrence and In re Shaputis) 2011 U.S. Supreme Court Brown the rising number of BPH grants. Managing Editor states. that said an inmate could not be v. Plata ruling that California’s The Stanford Report brings While California has approxi- denied parole based solely on overcrowded prisons violate the Money Ball-style statistical rea- California is releasing more mately 35,000 lifers, Texas is in the outrageousness of the crime Eighth Amendment has forced soning to understanding the BPH lifers on parole, according to a second place with fewer than committed. Rather, the assess- the state to take numerous actions decision-making process. The Stanford University report. 9,000. More than 30 percent of ment must be based on the “cur- to reduce prison population. next article in this series will Between 2008 and 2015, the California’s prison population is rent dangerousness” of the in- With lifers as a significant present a crude statistical model parole grant rate increased from serving indeterminate life sen- mate. portion of California’s inmate for predicting outcomes. 8 to 25 percent for those who ap- tences, followed by Utah (29.2 These rulings were counter- population, Governor Brown led The model is based on knowl- peared before the Parole Board percent) and Nevada (21.5 per- balanced with the passage of a restart of the parole process. edge — meaning anything that in 2015. cent). Proposition 9, Marsy’s Law, in Brown appointed Jennifer Shaf- increases your ability to predict “Parole has been viewed in- The Stanford Report authors November 2008. Prior to 2008, fer as the executive officer of the an outcome. It will help you make creasingly as a means of manag- acknowledge that “the number is the default denial length was Board of Parole Hearings (BPH) better predictions than trusting ing the state prison population,” enormous, representing not only one year. Marsy’s Law changed in 2011. your cell-mate. In the Stanford according to the April 2016 Fed- a significant percentage of Cali- parole denials’ default length to Shaffer has overseen both ad- Report, the statistical model has eral Sentencing Reporter (Stan- fornia prisoners, but a substan- 15 years, which could only be ministrative changes and new over 150 different factors and it ford Report). tial portion of the nation’s lifers.” reduced where there was “clear professional development train- determines how much weight to This has not always been the The developing trend toward and convincing evidence that ing resulting in an increase in give each particular factor. case. Between 1980 and 2008, parole grants and release deci- safety considerations did not re- grant rates to over 25 percent A copy of the above- the grant rate for lifers was vir- sions is due to the courts, legisla- quire longer incarceration.” in 2015. These suitability find- mentioned Stanford Report is tually zero. Not only were there tion and Gov. Jerry Brown. Even after the passage of ings are overturned rarely under available through the Prison few grants, California’s reliance The California Supreme Court Marsy’s Law, the parole grant Brown. Since 2011, Brown has University Project (PUP) to all on indeterminate life sentences issued two rulings in 2008 (In rate continued to increase. The reversed fewer than 20 percent of PUP students. Page 18 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 First place in handball wins more than granola bars

Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Miguel Rodriquez on right with goggles Pastor brings more than just sports to inmates

By Marcus Henderson the message these men bring Journalism Guild Writer in here. I had a chance to study with the pastor in the chapel. He Even when Pastor Miguel Ro- truly has a pastor heart. His faith Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News driquez (CQ) was recovering and dedication inspires us all, Handball players competing in the Lower Yard alley from surgery for a burst appen- especially him taking time off dix in 2015, he stayed involved from his church and family. He By Rahsaan Thomas “I play handball because it dog after a bone,” said Williams with the Prison Sports Ministry. is a quality person who has con- Staff Writer keeps you in shape,” said Scott. about why he dives on concrete From his sick bed he recruited tributed a lot to this program.” “I’m 61 and I’m still taking peo- to make plays. teams to visit the prison. Pastor Rodriquez said, “When On Christmas Eve, four pairs ple down.” “In order to be successful here, For 10 years Pastor Rodriquez I was 5, I knew God was real of handball players met in the In the next round, the young- you have to know how to play has been a hard-core sponsor. He when I knew death was real. I alley on San Quentin Prison’s est and the oldest men in the with both hands,” said Eric Post, has played and brought teams in was watching a cowboy movie Lower Yard to compete in a holi- tournament teamed up. Jamar who ran the tournament on be- to play basketball, baseball and and I asked my mom, ‘Do peo- day tournament for granola bar Smith, 36, and Bozzie Burton, half of the prison. football, and he’s working on re- ple really die?’” prizes. 64, played Williams and McClel- Williams and McClelland cruiting teams for soccer. Armed with that little bit of “The prize doesn’t so much land. faced off with Thomas and “I really work hard for these information, 9-year-old Ro- matter; it’s coming out here for Scott for first place. Williams guys. I think everyone deserves driquez moved to Honduras the fellowship and being part of a and McClelland jumped out to a a second chance. God can take with his grandparents. He felt community to get through these “I’m 61 and 5-0 lead. That increased to 14-7 the ordinary and make it ex- rejected there because people holidays together,” said Jeff Wil- when Thomas and Scott rallied traordinary,” Rodriquez said. were calling him a gringo. But liams, who took first place with I’m still taking hard to come back. They fell He started coming here with coming back to the states didn’t his partner, B. McClelland. short at 15-9. the Golden Gate Baptist Semi- make it better because they were The first-place winner received people down” McClelland said he loves nary (GGBS) and took over as calling him a dirty Mexican. 30 granola bars, second place 20, handball because, “It’s a high the director. The seminary is “I felt I didn’t belong any- and third place 10. With four Williams played with more cardio exercise and you have to now called Gate Way Seminary. where until I found my identity teams in the competition, only passion. He dived on the ground carry your own weight.” Gate Way teaches college cours- in Christ,” Rodriquez said. “I one would leave empty-handed. to hit the ball with his left hand Burton and Smith battled Ma- es on ministry to inmates. credit the Youth Ministry Group “This is the smallest tourna- twice. Backed by McClelland, geo and Shaffer for third place. “What he reflects is charac- for that. As a youth, that’s where ment we have ever had,” said they easily won, 15-5, advancing “Everybody had the potential ter,” said Lincoln Hill player you need structure. You need David Mageo. “We usually have to the finals. to win,” said Burton. John Galiste. “He loves the peo- adults to believe in you. Some- eight to nine teams.” “Jeff is active; He’s a good Burton and Smith took third, ple here and he loves all people. times all we need is a touch that In the first round, Kevin partner to have,” said McClel- winning 15-7. His fire never goes out. He is an everything will be OK. I can Thomas, 43, and Thomas Scott, land. “It’s all about change,” said inspiration. He always lets us imagine that some of the people 61, matched up against Mageo, Williams said he learned how Williams. “We aren’t who we know when there’s a game and here probably wouldn’t have 43, and Sedric Shaffer, 52. to play handball in prison 26 were when we committed our always shows up.” done what they did with just a Thomas and Scott slapped the years ago. Once he realized it crimes. Part of that change is “It’s not about the sports or touch.” blue handball against the wall was something at which he was finding our humanity and that the wins and losses,” said SQ Pastor Rodriquez tries to better than their opponents, edg- good, he continued to play, earn- comes from coming together Warrior General Manager Rob- bring that “touch” to those he ing out a 15-12 victory to ad- ing the nickname “Spiderman.” to play by the rules and having ert “Bishop” Butler. “It’s about sponsors. vance. “It’s full dedication, like a fun.” The 2016 SQ Warrior’s losing season still a win The San Quentin Warriors “Simekins didn’t meet my at- from assists, according to a ball, and we have been success- started the 2016 season with titude requirements,” Wright New York Times article by John ful at that.” high expectations. They recruit- said. Branch. SQ Warrior Harry “ATL” ed new talent, including a for- Similarly, when Simekins “We play a certain style where Smith also considers the season mer Memphis University player, played for Memphis University, everybody is involved,” said a success. but ended the season 5-8 against his team made the NCAA tour- Stephen Curry of the Golden “This was my most spiritu- Christian Sports Ministry, their nament’s Sweet 16, but he didn’t State Warriors in The New York ally fulfilling season in regard to worst record in years, yet they get to play because of a suspen- Times interview. “There’s a lot maturity,” Smith said. “I learned are still smiling. sion over off-court problems. of skill involved — skill that’s a lot dealing with patience and “I’m surprised we won as The SQ Warriors roster still showcased by ball movement humbleness. I also got to meet much as we did,” said Bill looked improved from last year and flow.” Draymond Green, Kevin Durant Epling, the sponsor of the Chris- with the addition of Tevin Four- The SQ Warriors’ lack of and play against Willie Green.” tian Sports Ministry’s Green nette. He averages 14 points chemistry led to their first los- Butler added, “In fact I think Team — the S.Q. Warriors’ per game, third on the team ing season since Daniel Wright this has been the best season toughest regular competitors. behind veteran players Allan came on as coach, five years ago. ever. Never in the history of “The guy from Memphis didn’t McIntosh (18.8 ppg) and Harry They went 5-8 against the Green prison basketball have inmates help them too much.” “ATL” Smith (16 ppg). This al- Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Team and 11-13 over all. (They been given the chance to play SQ Warriors Coach Daniel lowed forward/guard Anthony Harry “ATL” Smith dunking were 2-2 against Imago Dei, 4-2 against the level of former NBA, Wright said, “Arguably the most Ammons, a starter last year, to at SQ Warrior practice against Lincoln Hill, and 0-1 overseas pro and college player talented team since I got here in become the sixth man. He aver- against the Golden State War- talent that we have. Plus we were 2011.” aged 10.8 ppg. The Golden State Warriors riors staff.) on ESPN this year.” The former Memphis Uni- “We were a better team talent model the type of chemistry SQ Warriors General Man- McIntosh plans to do his part versity player, 6-foot-7 Mack wise, but not team wise,” Mc- their incarcerated namesakes ager Robert Butler said, “It’s the to improve the team next season. Simekins, showed promise in Intosh said. “We didn’t play to- need. Golden State logged al- first losing season in 13 years, “I’m gonna work out hard and his first games, averaging 16 gether as a team in any of the 20 most 500 more assists than the going by the records. However, come back in shape,” McIntosh points a game as a Warrior, but something games. We get that second-highest scoring NBA it’s never a losing season in my said. “I’ll be more outspoken he walked away from the team team chemistry, we’ll be unstop- team. Their 68 field goal per- mind. We set up this program to about team chemistry.” early in the season. pable.” centage comes mostly comes teach life skills through basket- –Rahsaan Thomas February 2017 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com Page 19 Sports fan behavior is said to be normal

Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News North Block battles West Block for Becky With the Good Hair Trophy

North Block keeps Becky after Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Ramon Watkins with his Raider memorabilia and a Christmas tournament picture of his Raider tattoo (inset) By Rahsaan Thomas guard Phirank Kim for a layup grand prize since its creation for Walking down the fifth tier deep connection to the Raiders Staff Writer at 29-26. a Labor Day tournament where in San Quentin State Prison’s stems from childhood. NB’s Upa Ama missed a shot NB beat WB. It goes back up North Block, you’ll see several “I grew up one block from A slow start, a late opposing that Cuevas rebounded. The ball for grabs with each new holiday 8”x11” signs with the logos of the Oakland Coliseum and, as West Block team surge, a closed shifted to Zitsue Lee’s hands. tournament. football teams, including the a kid, I used to watch the Raid- gym and playing outdoors in cold Lee took a shot and missed. His For the Christmas tournament, Cowboys, Steelers and, mostly, ers through the gate so much weather didn’t stop North Block teammate Vadim Zankarchenko WB brought back Coach Nick Raiders. the staff started letting me in from barely three-peating in the rebounded the ball and scored at Lopez, who managed to guide One individual has the Raider for free,” said Watkins. “They Asian-Pacific Islander Holiday 29-28 as the crowd erupted with his team back to the finals again. emblem tattooed on his stom- taught me about the game and Basketball Tournament where cheers. “He (Lopez) made a differ- ach, wears a Raider bracelet, has gave me a positive place to go the prize was keeping the Becky Kim stole the ball from NB ence,” said Ton. “He knows how the Raider crest on his coffee besides the streets.” with the Good Hair trophy. and led a three-on-one fast break to pull people in and out. He’s a cup and is known as the “San White said, “My stepfather “It was 42 degree out here. I down the court. Kim went up for good coach.” Quentin Raiders General.” He was a Raiders fan, and he intro- can’t feel my feet,” said North the layup with the outstretched “They played hard and I’m and many others root for the duced me to the team when I was Block’s (NB) center Damon arm of a NB defender blocking hella proud of them,” said Lo- Raiders even though the team 5. I’ve been a fan ever since.” Cooke right after the winning the basket, so he passed from the pez. “They didn’t give up all the hasn’t been to the playoff since These childhood memories game. air to a wide-open Charlie Srey way to the end.” 2002. make football more than just a NB guard Chau Vi responded, right under the rim. Srey gath- On the NB team was Chau For Ramon Watkins, the San game for the two men. “Champs don’t care; we play in ered himself for the easy poten- Vi, Khan, Dahvee Sophal, Ama, Quentin Raiders General, and Such a deep connection to elements. We three-peat.” tial game-winning layup, but a Juan Meza, Cooke and Alladin fellow fan Larry White, their sports may seem over the top to The battle for the trophy referee called traveling, leaving Pangilinan. some. But that behavior is nor- named Becky with the Good the score 29-28 NB. West Block: Cuevas, Lee, mal for basic human psychol- Hair came down to back-to-back “They won by my team’s mis- Srey, Bikkar Singh, Kevin Ne- ogy, neuroscience and cognitive controversial referee calls and takes,” said Zankarchenko. ang, Ton, Zankarchenko and tendencies, according to a May making a clutch free throw. NB On the other end, WB’s Lee Kim. 16 New Yorker book review of beat West Block (WB) by one aggressively guarded Adnan Early on, NB was nearly This is Your Brain on Sports. point in the first-to-30-points Khan and the referee called foul. eliminated from the tourna- The book’s authors, L. Jon contest. That sent Khan to the free-throw ment. Six games decided which Wertheim and Sam Sommers, “That was a good game,” said line, where either one of two at- of three teams made to the finals wrote, “Your brain on sports is Tith Ton of WB. tempts would win. Khan nailed and North Block was down two just your regular brain acting as The championship match was the first, winning the game and losses to one win. One more loss it does in other contexts.” held up by NB’s Upu Ama sing- keeping Becky in North Block would have put NB out the tour- The reviewer explains that ing the national anthem – in its for the third tournament. ney. people are aware of their entirety. Some players placed “That wasn’t a foul,” said Lee. NB stepped up and beat H- thoughts and feelings, but they their hands over their hearts and “But I accept the results.” unit, 24-15, tying all three cannot connect those thoughts other took a knee like SF 49er “That was the ugliest win,” teams’ records at 2-2. To break and feelings to what actually Colin Kaepernick has done. said Khan. the tie, NB played H-unit in happens in the brain or the rest NB needed one more point to “We came out and played and an extra game for a spot in the of the body. win, after taking a 29-22 lead. did our best,” said Kim. championship game and won, People experience the same But Rafael Cuevas started a WB Becky, made of carbon, 24-18. anxiety over the thought of a comeback by nailing two free wrapped in glossy-gold paper “I would like to continue this kicker missing a 30-yard field throws, making the score 29- and topped with a ping-pong interview, but I have to go find Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News goal as they do at the thought of 24. Then he stole the ball and sized ball resembling a min- Becky,” joked Upu after the Larry White with his prison being shot by their best friend. launched it down court to WB iature basketball, became the game. made Raider artwork Although one is irrational and the other is rational, the raw chemistry is identical. “The brain of someone whose Drug program ends season for gym basketball league team has just lost the Super Bowl For years, the gym hosted “That’s also the rainy season and men in their 20s. The league, Taylor said he created the CBL is indistinguishable from the the Championship Basketball Daylight Saving Time,” he said. which is one of the most antici- while at Centinela, a Level III brain of someone who is griev- League during winter evenings at “We can’t play outside in the eve- pated winter events, features an prison, in 2008 to give the men ing for the death of a loved one. San Quentin. The League provid- ning — it’s too dark, too cold and NBA-style draft to select players a positive outlet. He added that it No one would say those experi- ed an opportunity for competition too wet.” and referees for games. Taylor “virtually ended violence on the ences are equivalent,” reviewer and camaraderie. But the 2016- Public Information Officer Lt. even keeps stats and holds an all- yard from 2008 to 2011 among Louis Menand noted. 2017 tournament ended abruptly S. Robinson said that the prison star game mid-season. Blacks and Asians.” Menand explained that people one evening in mid-December had a mandate to start the sub- But this year, Taylor said there Originally called the Convict’s like rooting for underdogs, even when the administration closed stance abuse program (SAP) in wouldn’t be enough time to fit in All-Star Basketball League, he though underdogs are more like- the gym for recreation to house a December and the gym had been a full CBL season before the start changed the name to Champion- ly to lose. This is partly because treatment program there tempo- the only space available. “We of the official 2017 SQ Warriors ship Basketball League to reflect seeing them win pays off a mar- rarily. are looking at alternative loca- and Kings season. the rehabilitative culture at San ginal psychic rush greater than The closure coincided with tions for SAP,” he said, adding “I’m disappointed the CBL Quentin. the potential pain if they lost. some of the worst rain storms in that the administration planned was canceled because it gave me, Taylor said he hopes to plan In San Quentin, Watkins re- the Bay Area. For at least three to re-open the gym at nights and as an old guy, a sports activity to more sports events such as one- members seeing the Raiders weeks in January, men often had on weekends. The gym reopened do and a way to set an example as day tournaments on holidays. win all their championships. no place to go for recreation. on Jan. 27 for all general popula- a leader for the youngsters,” said “As long as I’m in CDCR, I’m With the Raiders’ first winning CBL founder Aaron “Harun” tion inmates for weeknights and player Eugene Williams. going to stay organizing sports season in 14 years, Watkins and Taylor said that he had sched- weekends. Player Brad Shells said the leagues that need little to no as- White hope this will be the year uled games in the gym on Satur- In the past, the CBL season had CBL brings people together. sistance from the administration the Raiders finally win the Su- day, Monday and Tuesday eve- run from December to February. “Basketball is just a guise. Who because that in itself shows we per Bowl again. For them, they nings to give people something The CBL hosts a half-court bas- doesn’t love basketball?” he said. need no supervision to do positive said, it would be almost as good to do during the off-season for ketball league for men 38 years “Recreation is a big part of keep- things,” he said. as getting released from prison. the S.Q. Kings and Warriors. old and over, often coached by ing the population grounded.” –Rahsaan Thomas –Rahsaan Thomas Page 20 SAN QUENTIN NEWS www.sanquentinnews.com February 2017 A forum to address nationwide criminal justice DA Forum Continued from Page 1

I had a lot of reservations and challenges before coming in here and talking to the inmates. I represent the victims and I have had their families sitting behind me in the courtroom. But, coming in here to these forums has made me a better prosecutor. As these men come out of prison, we want them to be accountable.” During the Jan. 26 meeting, inmates shared their stories about life behind bars, their paths to rehabilitation, and ideas for re-entering society success- fully. The meeting took place in the prison’s Protestant Chapel. Five circles of chairs were set up in a typical group therapy style, for face-to-face conversations. Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Seattle, Washington, District The national District Attorney forum on January 26 at the Garden Chapel in San Quentin State Prison Attorney Dan Satterberg asked the inmates why the circle pro- the long process of getting out of “Why aren’t we doing some- here that these men have be- ful in my life. Now, I’m doing cess works in restorative justice the violence and isolation found thing about that?” come emotionally intelligent. something helpful. It was hard programs. in maximum-security prisons The inmates provided sugges- These guys are taking what for me to move into forgiving “The circle process forces us and transferring to San Quentin. tions for how to connect inmates they have learned on their side myself and to understand and to look at ourselves,” inmate For many inmates, it took more to rehabilitative programs soon- of the pipeline and are putting it accept my crime. I learned how Lynn Beyett said. “When we’re than 10 years. er in their incarceration. to work on the other side of that to move from being a murderer sitting in the circle, listening Samuel Hearnes described the Fateen Jackson, a Guiding pipeline, with challenged youth, to Jamie.” to each other’s stories, all you road that led him to San Quen- Rage Into Power (GRIP) mentor, to prevent crime and incarcera- Oscar Arana talked about a have to do is close your eyes and tin. He joined a gang at 17 years proposed tangible benefits such tion. We also employ them to crime prevention strategy that you’ll hear your own story.” old, and he tried to live up to as time reductions for inmates. teach what they have learned may have kept him from turning Joe Mason said that he felt the image of a gang-banger. He to their brothers and sisters that to crime. He said that although the circle created a safe envi- is serving a life sentence for a are still incarcerated. We call he witnessed the consequences ronment to express his feelings. murder he committed at age 18 it ‘Turning the stigma into a of many bad choices, as a juve- “We have all different races trying to live up to that image. “I want to take badge.’” nile, he felt like bad things could from different places, and we Hearnes said that even before programs to Inmate Guss Edwards said, never happen to him. find out that we’re all in it to- he got to prison, he wanted to “GRIP allowed me to really “What could have worked for gether,” he said. change his lifestyle, but when redeem myself look at myself and understand me would be seeing the conse- Phoeun You said the circle he got to prison, he had to first the moments when I need to re- quences of my actions through also helps everyone to be heard. focus on “survival.” from the harm spond as it should be to what’s someone like a mother who lost “In a circle you can’t run or “I wanted to learn trades,” I’ve created” happening in my life instead of her child to a drug overdose hide,” You said. “Sometimes a Hearnes said, “but every time reacting violently. The program or drunk driver. At the time, child only needs to be heard in I’d get into a program, some- made me understand how to I couldn’t personally connect order to help.” thing like a riot or lock-down Rafael Cuevas, also a GRIP do this. The program saved my with what I was doing. If a kid Robert Richie, a member of would interrupt it. This went on mentor, suggested that people life.” were able to personally connect Criminal Gangs Anonymous for about 10 years, until I got to who had already gone through Edwards added, “I may sound with the impact of his actions, (CGA), said San Quentin and its San Quentin.” rehabilitative programs might aggressive, but I’m a puppy.” he could change them.” programs helped him improve Charlie Spence, a mentor, told be best to teach restorative jus- Jackson said he does not have The inmates were asked what himself. the prosecutors about the awk- tice curricula. “The success re- to appear before a parole board the community could do to help “The environment at San wardness that people feel when lies on getting the right people to get out of prison. those released from prison. Quentin was different than other they get here from other prisons in place,” he said. “I took advantage of the pro- “We need to know and be prisons,” Richie said. “At other because they aren’t used to in- Jacques Verduin, the execu- grams for myself,” Jackson reminded that we’re human be- prisons, lots of guys keep doing teracting with the outside com- tive director of Insight-Out, said. “I want to take programs ings,” Mathew Edwards said. wrong. When I got to San Quen- munity. “The majority of people spoke about GRIP, a 52-week to redeem myself from the harm “When people learn that we’ve tin, I met up with some of those at other prisons are going home comprehensive offender ac- I’ve created. It’s a life-changing been to prison, it’s like the scar- same guys. They were changed without having the opportunity countability program that takes program. GRIP helps me under- let letter. We need to be wel- and positive. That gave me the to reconnect the way San Quen- participants on a healing jour- stand myself. It teaches that you comed. We need another shot incentive to change myself.” tin inmates do,” he said. “They ney deep inside themselves so can keep your dignity and own for responsibility.” Richie said CGA changed his are only used to talking to other they can transform into change your truth.” The Portland, Oregon, district criminal thinking. He said hav- people in blue.” agents, giving back to the com- Jamie Sanchez a Spanish attorney Rodney Dale Underhill ing people come in from the Bay Chicago State’s Attorney Kim munities they once took from, GRIP member said while grow- wanted suggestions on how he Area community to facilitate Foxx acknowledged that high- working with at-risk youth and ing up, he always tried to satisfy could make better-informed de- the group made him feel like a security prisons do not give teaching those who are still in- others. He told the prosecutors cisions when he knows he has a normal person. inmates good opportunities for carcerated. that the rehabilitative programs conviction and must advise on a “CGA helped me understand change. She praised the services “It is a best-practices model, at San Quentin helped him un- prison sentence. that I was addicted to a criminal available at San Quentin. born from 20 years of pioneer- derstand himself. “Be able to talk to us,” An- lifestyle,” Richie said. “Now I “However, I just heard at oth- ing and working with thousands “I don’t have to be perfect, thony Ammons said. am a CGA sponsor. I went from er prisons, there were drug deals of prisoners,” said Verduin, who but I can be helpful,” Sanchez Vaughn Miles added, “Trust a taker to a giver.” and violence. That means that teaches GRIP in five California said about mentoring other in- your judgment about what The inmates also spoke about systems are failing,” she said. prisons. “You’re discovering mates. “I’ve never been help- you’ve witnessed today.”

Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Photo by Eddie Herena- San Quentin News Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx with Oscar Arana shares his idea on (center) talks about prisoner re-entry Robert Richie speaking to the crowd crime prevention strategies