The Language Project
April 13
Rahsaan Thomas, an imprisoned journalist, has long fought to change the way outside media describe people in prison. One of his toughest crowds? His fellow reporters.
The Language Project
April 13
While we have to be aware that any word we choose has influence, no amount of Googling will reveal the magic word that brings justice into American prisons.
The Language Project
April 12
Of course not everyone means harm when they use prison labels. But that doesn’t make the language any less damaging.
The Language Project
April 12
Rethinking the words journalists use to talk about people who are currently or previously incarcerated.
The Language Project
April 12
As correctional officers, we are conditioned to call prisoners ‘inmates.’ But at Sing Sing, where I worked for 25 years, that was as bad as calling them a snitch.
The Language Project
April 12
I didn’t always detest this term. But hearing officers use it as an insult reminded me to call incarcerated people — including myself — by our names.
Feature
March 24
After the success of her novel Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen spent years trying to prove a man's innocence. Now she’s “absolutely broke” and “seriously ill,” and her next book is “years past deadline.”
Coronavirus
December 18, 2020
Even as the first Americans begin to receive vaccines, the spread of coronavirus behind bars shows no sign of slowing.