Yesterday afternoon, I had just gotten off the phone with my friend, William. He’s recently been transferred from Stateville, a maximum security prison in Joliet, to a medium security prison in Sheridan, about an hour and a half from Chicago.
Phone calls for inmates at Sheridan are always limited to 20 minutes. There are only two phones in William’s section of the prison, so during designated times, all the inmates housed there have to cue up for a chance to make a call.
If I miss his call, he can’t leave a message, and I can’t call him back.
When I actually answered he said, “Eureka. I finally got a hold of you.”
Prison time and my work/family/life time don’t easily mesh.
Yesterday, William and I were talking about the election. In his usual philosophical way he reminded me of the ever-changing pattern of life throughout the ages.
“Jen,” he said, “when you’ve been in prison as long as I have, you have to find ways to stay positive, to keep moving forward—no matter what.”
William would know about the need to stay positive. Next spring will mark his 37th year in prison—13 of those years spent on death row until his sentence got commuted by Gov. Ryan.
I’ve only known William for a tiny bit of that time, just 9 months. It was his story that led me to reach out.
William is 60 years old. He graduated from Northwestern last November along with 15 other inmates at Stateville. These 16 men received diplomas from Northwestern in the first-of-its-kind prison educational program pioneered by Northwestern professor and visionary, Jennifer Lackey.
I had read about Jennifer and William in an article in Chicago Magazine last February and was deeply moved by William’s harrowing life story, personal transformation, and college degree from a top-ten university. Jennifer Lackey told me when I met her later that William is one of the best students she’s ever had.
After reading the article, I wrote William a letter telling him of my admiration for what he’d accomplished.
About a week or so later, I received a letter back. Suddenly, William was no longer a statistic. He was a flesh-and-blood person, himself a victim of systemic injustices.
Since then, not only have William and I become friends, but I have also become acquainted with a coalition of amazing people who are fighting for prison reform in our state and clemency for William.
In fact, I had a chance to meet Governor Pritzker face-to-face at a fundraiser this past summer, and I asked the Governor directly about the possibility of clemency for William. He was attentive but evasive.
I’ve also shown a documentary at my church to raise awareness about mass incarceration in America, set up phone calls to be made on William’s behalf for clemency, and met amazing people active in the cause for prison reform.
At Sheridan, William now works as a teaching assistant for the Northwestern prison classes and also serves as a mentor for other inmates. He’s a voracious reader, kind and thoughtful, and he and I enjoy recommending books to one another, swapping poetry, and philosophizing about life.
His ongoing mantra is living a life of perpetual atonement.
This November 15 will mark the one-year anniversary of his Northwestern graduation. If you want to see some truly amazing speeches, listen to each of the 16 graduates as they receive their diplomas. (Watch a short clip here.) (Full version here. You can see William speak at the 1:24:30 mark.)
Writer Ta Nahesi Coates gave the commencement address that day, and the ceremony itself had the pomp and circumstance of a Northwestern graduation ceremony, albeit surrounded by prison guards.
One final note. Not all of my efforts have been well received.
But I believe there are many stories; that redemption and forgiveness are possible for those who significantly change their lives. And I believe in the transformative and restorative power of education.
These are my beliefs.
In truth, when you’re speaking up for what matters to you, it’s likely some people won’t agree with you.
But each of us is called to speak out for what we believe in. That’s part of what it means to find and share your courageous and authentic voice.
So my fiends, what’s on your hearts and minds? Are you ready to unlock the potential of your courageous voice?
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