Morgan Godvin is JSTOR Daily’s engagement editor (and occasional feature writer) for the American Prison Newspapers collection. She is formerly incarcerated and an Air Force veteran, but only in the most technical sense.
For incarcerated people, being able to experience something collectively with those beyond the walls is a type of reprieve that buoys the soul and psyche.
There were 35 million prisoners of war held during World War II. One soldier's diary full of collages and drawings brings a human dimension to that number.
Formerly incarcerated people comprise the largest group of disenfranchised American voters. The American Prison Newspapers collection offers fresh insight into the issue.
The laws around search and seizure as they apply to average people, explained by Rafael Torres, an incarcerated Inmate Counsel Substitute in Louisiana.
The award-winning prison newspaper has long covered topics like prison policy, the death penalty, the societal cost of mass incarceration, that are still relevant today.
Second Chance Month is new, but concerns about job prospects, losing the right to vote, and high recidivism rates for the formerly incarcerated are not.
Medical neglect, food injustice, and mental health woes serve as the creative inspiration for poetry. Plus, how many days of work does it take to buy a bra?