PHILOSOPHY
Images courtesy of Peter Mertz
Our Mission
Prison Renaissance connects incarcerated people to the communities that need them.
Our Goals
To use art and community to create a culture of transformation to end cycles of incarceration
To create more proximity between the general public and incarcerated people
Our Models
Centering the voices of incarcerated people is vital to ongoing conversations criminal justice reform. Part of our work is supporting a cultural shift that celebrates the insights of incarcerated people in activist and creative circles. Prison Renaissance is dedicating to creating, testing and spreading new models of incarcerated leadership, artistic practice, and academic work. Briefly, our models are as follows:
Leadership:
We are changing the very model of rehabilitative programming by handing the leadership and responsibility of transformation to the people who are being transformed. Instead of free allies “granting” access to the incarcerated, we are a collaborative effort, learning how to navigate barriers of separation, dearth of technology, and bureaucracy together. The model that Prison Renaissance is building demonstrates the feasibility and necessity of empowering incarcerated people to lead their own movements.
Artistic Practice:
Prison Renaissance provides a platform for incarcerated authors to build personal and professional connections to support artistic and personal growth. Strong leaders develop organically within the healing, empathy building, and self-reflection of writing and art. Publication and collaboration cultivates confidence and professionalism and connects our contributors to a community of incarcerated and free authors.
Academic:
We center incarcerated voices in conversations about incarceration in schools and universities. For this reason, Prison Renaissance works to establish university chapters. Our chapters campaign for universities to incorporate the work of incarcerated authors in coursework and will bring incarcerated voices to their campuses by hosting live poetry readings, lectures and dialogues with call-ins from incarcerated authors. By placing incarcerated voices at the forefront and emphasizing the healing power of communication through art, Prison Renaissance hopes to affect material change in the mindset of teachers, professors, and students.
People
Co-founder/Editor: Emile DeWeaver
Co-founder: Rahsaan Thomas
Co-founder: Juan Meza
Editor/External Communications: Camille Griep
Editorial Interns: Natasha Grivas, Elizabeth Stensrud
Art Coordinator: Orlando Smith
See our Mentorships & Collaborations page for a growing list of participating writers and artists.
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Prison Renaissance is not associated with any Department of Corrections.