by Umar Al Aswad, FCI Seagoville It amazes me howsometimes people blame individualsfor wounds created by earthquakes.when truth is...absence got many fathers too.from low wages.to locked doors.Prison system.Addiction,hopelessness,generations carrying hurt like backpacks,they never learned how to put down.And children don’t just miss people.They miss stabilityThey miss … [Read more...] about Missing Fathers, Missing Systems
Poetry
Hit the Devil
by FROG (Forever Reliant On God) & Ghostwrite Mike Intro | GhostWe masterin the fine art of self dissection... somatic abolitionFirst person narrative, poetry, spoken word... this that trauma talk monologue Verse 1 | FROGSelf-destructive seeds implanted by distractionsMoney, power, respect, illogical satisfactionGenerational curses, soiled our DNATribe after tribe we … [Read more...] about Hit the Devil
Corruption Wears a Tie
by Umar Al Aswad, FCI Seagoville Corruption don’t always wear ski masks.Sometimes it wears cufflinks.Sometimes it walks into meetingswith polished shoes and handshakesthat smell like expensive, tax-payer money cologne.Sometimes it says...“we’re investing in the future”while the school ceiling leaksrainwater onto a child’s spelling test.Sometimes corruption smiles for … [Read more...] about Corruption Wears a Tie
Jail Bird
by E.D.H the writer, Kern Valley State Prison I’m more than a JailbirdI’m an incarcerated human being.I’m more than a JailbirdI’m a father that yearns to protect and provide for my three children.I’m more than a JailbirdI’m just a man who made a negative decision.I’m more than a JailbirdI’m just a man who’s been in jails and prisons for long periods periodically.I’m more … [Read more...] about Jail Bird
Broken Promises
by Leo Cardez, East Moline Correctional Center I reach out from a concrete box in the land of the free, where steel cell doors slam louder than any liberty. Two-hundred-fifty years of dreams, promises, and flags, But my dream is a nightmare and my freedom wears name tags. The Constitution makes promises by birthright, but promises are broken for those that can’t … [Read more...] about Broken Promises
