We Need Prison Advocates Now More Than Ever!

 A few days ago, a friend of mine in prison was talking to another prisoner about the frequent mailroom censorship issues we have at this prison (Parnall Correctional Facility). This other prisoner had experienced several problems with mail and books being rejected. Although he had appealed these rejections, as my friend and I both have our own censored mail, the rejections were upheld. The Michigan prison system, and Parnall especially, has staff members that interpret policy in extreme and often unconstitutional ways, resulting in severe First Amendment restrictions for prisoners. 

My friend tried to encourage this other prisoner to continue his appeals, but he expressed reluctance. He stated that he would be leaving prison in less than a year, and then he could put this behind him. 

I totally understand his sentiment, especially because the fight for our constitutional rights is SO difficult in a system like the MDOC that doesn't follow its own rules; however, his sentiment also expresses one of the problems with advocacy. Many advocates are active only because the system affects them or an incarcerated loved one. 

Of course, it makes sense that people would spend their energies in areas that affect them. It's the same reason mothers who lost children to drunk drivers formed M.A.D.D. It's also why mothers who lost children to overdoses are in the front lines of offense against opiates. 

Advocating for criminal justice reforms, and especially for prison reforms, is especially tough because of the revolving nature of prison. By the time any traction occurs on change, people are worn out from the fight. When no longer directly affected, it's easy to lose the drive to continue. But we need advocates! We need people to stand up and communicate to the Michigan legislature that the current system is not just and is too costly. 

Michigan's status as having the highest average prison sentence length and one of the highest cost per prisoner prison budgets ought to drive Michigan's residents to demand change. Michigan's high budget isn't because we prisoners eat lavishly or have privileges paid for by taxpayers. Our food is horrible, our health care extremely ineffective and low quality, and Michigan's prison budget is still very large. 

I get it. Prisoner advocacy is tiring. It's discouraging. Michigan depends on its incarceration industry to keep many small Michigan cities supplied with jobs and tax revenue. There's a lot of resistance to change. But the fight is worth it, and whole groups of resilient people are fighting for change. 

On April 20th, yet another good time bill was proposed in the Michigan legislature. Good time is not the answer to every problem in Michigan's prison system, by far. But it's a good start to reduce the strain on the system and free up funding, space, and staff needed for true reform.  

Perhaps you're tired of the fight for reforms, and like some prisoners maybe you have lost hope that good time legislation will pass. Please don't give up! You might not be able to do much, but you can at least send an email to your legislators asking them to seriously consider passing this important legislation. The email is even mostly written for you already. Just go to www.MiJustice.org/2023 to send an email to your legislator, then ask someone else to do the same.

Michigan Justice Advocacy has been at the forefront of this important fight, and I'm grateful for their volunteers who put in so many hours to educate legislators and the public on the reasons why good time legislation is good for Michigan. I hate to borrow a phrase from my favorite baseball team, the Chicago Cubs, but maybe this'll be the year.