Author: Michele Evans
Publisher: Silver Screen Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 406
Book Description
In the shadow of New York City's skyline, behind the looming walls of Rikers Island, a tale of resilience, hope, and the indomitable human spirit unfolds. Shalise Simmons' world is turned upside down when she finds herself incarcerated in the infamous Rikers Island jail. Trapped in a system designed to break her, Shalise discovers strength she never knew she had. As she navigates the complexities of prison life, she encounters a cast of characters that will change her life forever. From the gritty realities of life behind bars to moments of unexpected humor and warmth, "Rikers Island" is a rollercoaster ride through the human condition. Witness the bonds of friendship that form in the most unlikely of places and the triumph of the human spirit against all odds. "Rikers Island" is more than just Shalise's story. It's a gripping portrayal of a flawed justice system, a meditation on freedom and confinement, and a testament to the power of resilience. As Shalise battles against injustice, her journey will inspire, challenge, and ultimately uplift you. đ Dive into a story where every page crackles with tension and emotion. Where hope shines even in the darkest corners. Where every character's journey speaks to the courage we all hold within. Rikers Island: A place where despair and hope walk hand in hand, where every day is a fight for survival, and where one woman's journey will leave you forever changed. đ Get your copy today and embark on an unforgettable journey through the heart of one of America's most notorious jails!
Rikers Island: Criminalized Survivor
Author: Michele Evans
Publisher: Silver Screen Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 406
Book Description
In the shadow of New York City's skyline, behind the looming walls of Rikers Island, a tale of resilience, hope, and the indomitable human spirit unfolds. Shalise Simmons' world is turned upside down when she finds herself incarcerated in the infamous Rikers Island jail. Trapped in a system designed to break her, Shalise discovers strength she never knew she had. As she navigates the complexities of prison life, she encounters a cast of characters that will change her life forever. From the gritty realities of life behind bars to moments of unexpected humor and warmth, "Rikers Island" is a rollercoaster ride through the human condition. Witness the bonds of friendship that form in the most unlikely of places and the triumph of the human spirit against all odds. "Rikers Island" is more than just Shalise's story. It's a gripping portrayal of a flawed justice system, a meditation on freedom and confinement, and a testament to the power of resilience. As Shalise battles against injustice, her journey will inspire, challenge, and ultimately uplift you. đ Dive into a story where every page crackles with tension and emotion. Where hope shines even in the darkest corners. Where every character's journey speaks to the courage we all hold within. Rikers Island: A place where despair and hope walk hand in hand, where every day is a fight for survival, and where one woman's journey will leave you forever changed. đ Get your copy today and embark on an unforgettable journey through the heart of one of America's most notorious jails!
Publisher: Silver Screen Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 406
Book Description
In the shadow of New York City's skyline, behind the looming walls of Rikers Island, a tale of resilience, hope, and the indomitable human spirit unfolds. Shalise Simmons' world is turned upside down when she finds herself incarcerated in the infamous Rikers Island jail. Trapped in a system designed to break her, Shalise discovers strength she never knew she had. As she navigates the complexities of prison life, she encounters a cast of characters that will change her life forever. From the gritty realities of life behind bars to moments of unexpected humor and warmth, "Rikers Island" is a rollercoaster ride through the human condition. Witness the bonds of friendship that form in the most unlikely of places and the triumph of the human spirit against all odds. "Rikers Island" is more than just Shalise's story. It's a gripping portrayal of a flawed justice system, a meditation on freedom and confinement, and a testament to the power of resilience. As Shalise battles against injustice, her journey will inspire, challenge, and ultimately uplift you. đ Dive into a story where every page crackles with tension and emotion. Where hope shines even in the darkest corners. Where every character's journey speaks to the courage we all hold within. Rikers Island: A place where despair and hope walk hand in hand, where every day is a fight for survival, and where one woman's journey will leave you forever changed. đ Get your copy today and embark on an unforgettable journey through the heart of one of America's most notorious jails!
Across The Bridge a Rikers Island Story
Author: Steven Dominguez
Publisher: Molding Messengers, LLC
ISBN: 0578826550
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 296
Book Description
A harrowing insight into New York City's most notorious detention complex, Rikers Island. The narrative plays through multiple characters who possess a particular position of control and power within the jail, along with the inmates and civilians who witness the violence, drugs, sex, and corruption that occurs every day inside. The seclusion of the jail from the city's beautiful skyline can seem like an amazing inferno to outsiders, however, for those who make it to the other side whether to make a living, being detained for breaking the law or visiting someone accused of doing so, they all share that unshakable feeling. Each character intertwines with one another through desperation and aspiration, sharing the same main objective... survival. Fraternization between uniformed staff and those incarcerated, the drug and alcohol abuse they have in common, violence between the inner-city gangs who congregate under the same roof, and the political pressure of elected officials attempting to maintain order where over 40% of the population suffers from mental illness. Out of sight out of mind. WELCOME TO THE ISLAND.
Publisher: Molding Messengers, LLC
ISBN: 0578826550
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 296
Book Description
A harrowing insight into New York City's most notorious detention complex, Rikers Island. The narrative plays through multiple characters who possess a particular position of control and power within the jail, along with the inmates and civilians who witness the violence, drugs, sex, and corruption that occurs every day inside. The seclusion of the jail from the city's beautiful skyline can seem like an amazing inferno to outsiders, however, for those who make it to the other side whether to make a living, being detained for breaking the law or visiting someone accused of doing so, they all share that unshakable feeling. Each character intertwines with one another through desperation and aspiration, sharing the same main objective... survival. Fraternization between uniformed staff and those incarcerated, the drug and alcohol abuse they have in common, violence between the inner-city gangs who congregate under the same roof, and the political pressure of elected officials attempting to maintain order where over 40% of the population suffers from mental illness. Out of sight out of mind. WELCOME TO THE ISLAND.
All Day
Author: Liza Jessie Peterson
Publisher: Center Street
ISBN: 1455570907
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
ALL DAY is a behind-the-bars, personal glimpse into the issue of mass incarceration via an unpredictable, insightful and ultimately hopeful reflection on teaching teens while they await sentencing. Told with equal parts raw honesty and unbridled compassion, ALL DAY recounts a year in Liza Jessie Peterson's classroom at Island Academy, the high school for inmates detained at New York City's Rikers Island. A poet and actress who had done occasional workshops at the correctional facility, Peterson was ill-prepared for a full-time stint teaching in the GED program for the incarcerated youths. For the first time faced with full days teaching the rambunctious, hyper, and fragile adolescent inmates, "Ms. P" comes to understand the essence of her predominantly Black and Latino students as she attempts not only to educate them, but to instill them with a sense of self-worth long stripped from their lives. "I have quite a spirited group of drama kings, court jesters, flyboy gangsters, tricksters, and wannabe pimps all in my charge, all up in my face, to educate," Peterson discovers. "Corralling this motley crew of bad-news bears to do any lesson is like running boot camp for hyperactive gremlins. I have to be consistent, alert, firm, witty, fearless, and demanding, and most important, I have to have strong command of the subject I'm teaching." Discipline is always a challenge, with the students spouting street-infused backtalk and often bouncing off the walls with pent-up testosterone. Peterson learns quickly that she must keep the upper hand-set the rules and enforce them with rigor, even when her sympathetic heart starts to waver. Despite their relentless bravura and antics-and in part because of it-Peterson becomes a fierce advocate for her students. She works to instill the young men, mostly black, with a sense of pride about their history and culture: from their African roots to Langston Hughes and Malcolm X. She encourages them to explore and express their true feelings by writing their own poems and essays. When the boys push her buttons (on an almost daily basis) she pushes back, demanding that they meet not only her expectations or the standards of the curriculum, but set expectations for themselves-something most of them have never before been asked to do. She witnesses some amazing successes as some of the boys come into their own under her tutelage. Peterson vividly captures the prison milieu and the exuberance of the kids who have been handed a raw deal by society and have become lost within the system. Her time in the classroom teaches her something, too-that these boys want to be rescued. They want normalcy and love and opportunity.
Publisher: Center Street
ISBN: 1455570907
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
ALL DAY is a behind-the-bars, personal glimpse into the issue of mass incarceration via an unpredictable, insightful and ultimately hopeful reflection on teaching teens while they await sentencing. Told with equal parts raw honesty and unbridled compassion, ALL DAY recounts a year in Liza Jessie Peterson's classroom at Island Academy, the high school for inmates detained at New York City's Rikers Island. A poet and actress who had done occasional workshops at the correctional facility, Peterson was ill-prepared for a full-time stint teaching in the GED program for the incarcerated youths. For the first time faced with full days teaching the rambunctious, hyper, and fragile adolescent inmates, "Ms. P" comes to understand the essence of her predominantly Black and Latino students as she attempts not only to educate them, but to instill them with a sense of self-worth long stripped from their lives. "I have quite a spirited group of drama kings, court jesters, flyboy gangsters, tricksters, and wannabe pimps all in my charge, all up in my face, to educate," Peterson discovers. "Corralling this motley crew of bad-news bears to do any lesson is like running boot camp for hyperactive gremlins. I have to be consistent, alert, firm, witty, fearless, and demanding, and most important, I have to have strong command of the subject I'm teaching." Discipline is always a challenge, with the students spouting street-infused backtalk and often bouncing off the walls with pent-up testosterone. Peterson learns quickly that she must keep the upper hand-set the rules and enforce them with rigor, even when her sympathetic heart starts to waver. Despite their relentless bravura and antics-and in part because of it-Peterson becomes a fierce advocate for her students. She works to instill the young men, mostly black, with a sense of pride about their history and culture: from their African roots to Langston Hughes and Malcolm X. She encourages them to explore and express their true feelings by writing their own poems and essays. When the boys push her buttons (on an almost daily basis) she pushes back, demanding that they meet not only her expectations or the standards of the curriculum, but set expectations for themselves-something most of them have never before been asked to do. She witnesses some amazing successes as some of the boys come into their own under her tutelage. Peterson vividly captures the prison milieu and the exuberance of the kids who have been handed a raw deal by society and have become lost within the system. Her time in the classroom teaches her something, too-that these boys want to be rescued. They want normalcy and love and opportunity.
Life on the Outside
Author: Jennifer Gonnerman
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312424572
Category : Women drug dealers
Languages : en
Pages : 372
Book Description
Chronicles the life of Elaine Bartlett, a woman who spent sixteen years in prison for selling cocaine, tracing her steps as she is released from prison and tries to reconstruct her life.
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312424572
Category : Women drug dealers
Languages : en
Pages : 372
Book Description
Chronicles the life of Elaine Bartlett, a woman who spent sixteen years in prison for selling cocaine, tracing her steps as she is released from prison and tries to reconstruct her life.
Life and Death in Rikers Island
Author: Homer Venters
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
ISBN: 1421427354
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 201
Book Description
This revelatory and groundbreaking book concludes with the author's analysis of the case for closing Rikers Island jails and his advice on how to do it for the good of the incarcerated.
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
ISBN: 1421427354
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 201
Book Description
This revelatory and groundbreaking book concludes with the author's analysis of the case for closing Rikers Island jails and his advice on how to do it for the good of the incarcerated.
Corruption Officer
Author: Gary L. Heyward
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1476794324
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 288
Book Description
In this shocking memoir from a former corrections officer, Gary Heyward shares an eye-opening, gritty, and devastating account of his descent into criminal life, smuggling contraband inside the infamous Rikers Island jails. Gary Heywardâs life changed forever when he received a letter from the New York City Department of Corrections announcing he was accepted into the academy for new recruits. For the Harlem-born ex-Marine, being an officer of the law was the ticket heâd been waiting for to move up from a low-wage security job and out of the Polo Ground Projects in New York Cityâand take his mother with him. Heyward was warned of the temptations heâd encounter as a new officer, but when faced with financial hardship, he suddenly found himself unable to resist the income generated from selling contraband to inmates. In his distinctive voice, Heyward takes you on a journey inside the walls of Rikers Island, showing how he teamed up with various inmates and other officers to develop a system that allowed him to profit from selling drugs inside the jail. Corruption Officer is a jarring exposĂ© of a man having lived on both sides of the law, a rare insiderâs look at a corrupt city jail, and a testament to the lengths weâll go when our backs are against the wall.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1476794324
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 288
Book Description
In this shocking memoir from a former corrections officer, Gary Heyward shares an eye-opening, gritty, and devastating account of his descent into criminal life, smuggling contraband inside the infamous Rikers Island jails. Gary Heywardâs life changed forever when he received a letter from the New York City Department of Corrections announcing he was accepted into the academy for new recruits. For the Harlem-born ex-Marine, being an officer of the law was the ticket heâd been waiting for to move up from a low-wage security job and out of the Polo Ground Projects in New York Cityâand take his mother with him. Heyward was warned of the temptations heâd encounter as a new officer, but when faced with financial hardship, he suddenly found himself unable to resist the income generated from selling contraband to inmates. In his distinctive voice, Heyward takes you on a journey inside the walls of Rikers Island, showing how he teamed up with various inmates and other officers to develop a system that allowed him to profit from selling drugs inside the jail. Corruption Officer is a jarring exposĂ© of a man having lived on both sides of the law, a rare insiderâs look at a corrupt city jail, and a testament to the lengths weâll go when our backs are against the wall.
Killer Looks
Author: Zara Stone
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1633886735
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 359
Book Description
Killer Looks is the definitive story about the long-forgotten practice of providing free nose jobs, face-lifts, breast implants, and other physical alterations to prisoners, the idea being that by remodeling the face you remake the man. From the 1920s up to the mid-1990s, half a million prison inmates across America, Canada, and the U.K willingly went under the knife, their tab picked up by the government. In the beginning, this was a haphazard affair -- applied inconsistently and unfairly to inmates, but entering the 1960s, a movement to scientifically quantify the long-term effect of such programs took hold. And, strange as it may sound, the criminologists were right: recidivism rates plummeted. In 1967, a three-year cosmetic surgery program set on Rikers Island saw recidivism rates drop 36% for surgically altered offenders. The program, funded by a $240,000 grant from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, was led by Dr. Michael Lewin, who ran a similar program at Sing-Sing prison in 1953. Killer Looks draws on the intersectionality of socioeconomic success, racial bias, the prison industry complex and the fallacy of attractiveness to get to the heart of how appearance and societal approval creates self-worth, and uncovers deeper truths of beauty bias, inherited racism, effective recidivism programs, and inequality. ,
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1633886735
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 359
Book Description
Killer Looks is the definitive story about the long-forgotten practice of providing free nose jobs, face-lifts, breast implants, and other physical alterations to prisoners, the idea being that by remodeling the face you remake the man. From the 1920s up to the mid-1990s, half a million prison inmates across America, Canada, and the U.K willingly went under the knife, their tab picked up by the government. In the beginning, this was a haphazard affair -- applied inconsistently and unfairly to inmates, but entering the 1960s, a movement to scientifically quantify the long-term effect of such programs took hold. And, strange as it may sound, the criminologists were right: recidivism rates plummeted. In 1967, a three-year cosmetic surgery program set on Rikers Island saw recidivism rates drop 36% for surgically altered offenders. The program, funded by a $240,000 grant from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, was led by Dr. Michael Lewin, who ran a similar program at Sing-Sing prison in 1953. Killer Looks draws on the intersectionality of socioeconomic success, racial bias, the prison industry complex and the fallacy of attractiveness to get to the heart of how appearance and societal approval creates self-worth, and uncovers deeper truths of beauty bias, inherited racism, effective recidivism programs, and inequality. ,
Lockdown on Rikers
Author: Mary E. Buser
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1466890169
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 282
Book Description
Mary Buser began her career at Rikers Island as a social work intern, brimming with ideas and eager to help incarcerated women find a better path. Her reassignment to a men's jail coincided with the dawn of the city's "stop-and-frisk" policy, a flood of unprecedented arrests, and the biggest jailhouse build-up in New York City history. Committed to the possibility of growth for the scarred and tattooed masses who filed into her session booth, Buser was suddenly faced with black eyes, punched-out teeth, and frantic whispers of beatings by officers. Recognizing the greater danger of pointing a finger at one's captors, Buser attempted to help them, while also keeping them as well as herself, safe. Following her promotion to assistant chief, she was transferred to different jails, working in the Mental Health Center, and finally, at Rikers's notorious "jail within jail," the dreaded solitary confinement unit, where she saw horrors she'd never imagined. Finally, it became too much to bear, forcing Buser to flee Rikers and never look back - until now. Lockdown on Rikers shines a light into the deepest and most horrific recesses of the criminal justice system, and shows how far it has really drifted from the ideals we espouse.
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1466890169
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 282
Book Description
Mary Buser began her career at Rikers Island as a social work intern, brimming with ideas and eager to help incarcerated women find a better path. Her reassignment to a men's jail coincided with the dawn of the city's "stop-and-frisk" policy, a flood of unprecedented arrests, and the biggest jailhouse build-up in New York City history. Committed to the possibility of growth for the scarred and tattooed masses who filed into her session booth, Buser was suddenly faced with black eyes, punched-out teeth, and frantic whispers of beatings by officers. Recognizing the greater danger of pointing a finger at one's captors, Buser attempted to help them, while also keeping them as well as herself, safe. Following her promotion to assistant chief, she was transferred to different jails, working in the Mental Health Center, and finally, at Rikers's notorious "jail within jail," the dreaded solitary confinement unit, where she saw horrors she'd never imagined. Finally, it became too much to bear, forcing Buser to flee Rikers and never look back - until now. Lockdown on Rikers shines a light into the deepest and most horrific recesses of the criminal justice system, and shows how far it has really drifted from the ideals we espouse.
Incarceration Nations
Author: Baz Dreisinger
Publisher: Other Press, LLC
ISBN: 159051727X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 337
Book Description
Baz Dreisinger travels behind bars in nine countries to rethink the state of justice in a global context Beginning in Africa and ending in Europe, Incarceration Nations is a first-person odyssey through the prison systems of the world. Professor, journalist, and founder of the Prison-to-College-Pipeline, Dreisinger looks into the human stories of incarcerated men and women and those who imprison them, creating a jarring, poignant view of a world to which most are denied access, and a rethinking of one of Americaâs most far-reaching global exports: the modern prison complex. From serving as a restorative justice facilitator in a notorious South African prison and working with genocide survivors in Rwanda, to launching a creative writing class in an overcrowded Ugandan prison and coordinating a drama workshop for women prisoners in Thailand, Dreisinger examines the world behind bars with equal parts empathy and intellect. She journeys to Jamaica to visit a prison music program, to Singapore to learn about approaches to prisoner reentry, to Australia to grapple with the bottom line of private prisons, to a federal supermax in Brazil to confront the horrors of solitary confinement, and finally to the so-called model prisons of Norway. Incarceration Nations concludes with climactic lessons about the past, present, and future of justice.
Publisher: Other Press, LLC
ISBN: 159051727X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 337
Book Description
Baz Dreisinger travels behind bars in nine countries to rethink the state of justice in a global context Beginning in Africa and ending in Europe, Incarceration Nations is a first-person odyssey through the prison systems of the world. Professor, journalist, and founder of the Prison-to-College-Pipeline, Dreisinger looks into the human stories of incarcerated men and women and those who imprison them, creating a jarring, poignant view of a world to which most are denied access, and a rethinking of one of Americaâs most far-reaching global exports: the modern prison complex. From serving as a restorative justice facilitator in a notorious South African prison and working with genocide survivors in Rwanda, to launching a creative writing class in an overcrowded Ugandan prison and coordinating a drama workshop for women prisoners in Thailand, Dreisinger examines the world behind bars with equal parts empathy and intellect. She journeys to Jamaica to visit a prison music program, to Singapore to learn about approaches to prisoner reentry, to Australia to grapple with the bottom line of private prisons, to a federal supermax in Brazil to confront the horrors of solitary confinement, and finally to the so-called model prisons of Norway. Incarceration Nations concludes with climactic lessons about the past, present, and future of justice.
Radical Acts of Justice
Author: Jocelyn Simonson
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1620978075
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 124
Book Description
An original argument that the answer to mass incarceration lies not with experts and pundits, but with ordinary people taking extraordinary actions togetherâwritten by a leading authority on bail reform and social movements From reading books on mass incarceration, one might conclude that the way out of our overly punitive, racially disparate criminal system is to put things in the hands of experts, technocrats able to think their way out of the problem. But, as Jocelyn Simonson points out in her groundbreaking new book, the problems posed by the American carceral state are not just technical puzzles; they present profound moral questions for our time. Radical Acts of Justice tells the stories of ordinary people joining together in collective acts of resistance: paying bail for a stranger, using social media to let the public know what everyday courtroom proceedings are like, making a video about someoneâs life for a criminal court judge, presenting a budget proposal to the city council. When people join together to contest received ideas of justice and safety, they challenge the ideas that prosecutions and prisons make us safer; that public officials charged with maintaining âlaw and orderâ are carrying out the will of the people; and that justice requires putting people in cages. Through collective action, these groups live out new and more radical ideas of what justice can look like. In a book that will be essential reading for those who believe our current systems of policing, criminal law, and prisons are untenable, Jocelyn Simonson shows how to shift power away from the elite actors at the front of the courtroom and toward the swelling collective in the back.
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1620978075
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 124
Book Description
An original argument that the answer to mass incarceration lies not with experts and pundits, but with ordinary people taking extraordinary actions togetherâwritten by a leading authority on bail reform and social movements From reading books on mass incarceration, one might conclude that the way out of our overly punitive, racially disparate criminal system is to put things in the hands of experts, technocrats able to think their way out of the problem. But, as Jocelyn Simonson points out in her groundbreaking new book, the problems posed by the American carceral state are not just technical puzzles; they present profound moral questions for our time. Radical Acts of Justice tells the stories of ordinary people joining together in collective acts of resistance: paying bail for a stranger, using social media to let the public know what everyday courtroom proceedings are like, making a video about someoneâs life for a criminal court judge, presenting a budget proposal to the city council. When people join together to contest received ideas of justice and safety, they challenge the ideas that prosecutions and prisons make us safer; that public officials charged with maintaining âlaw and orderâ are carrying out the will of the people; and that justice requires putting people in cages. Through collective action, these groups live out new and more radical ideas of what justice can look like. In a book that will be essential reading for those who believe our current systems of policing, criminal law, and prisons are untenable, Jocelyn Simonson shows how to shift power away from the elite actors at the front of the courtroom and toward the swelling collective in the back.