I was charged as an adult at 15 in Southern California. Now I’m 41 years old and will have a parole hearing in December. In 2017 I was doing advocacy work with two human rights organizations, “Justice Now” and “CCWP,” when I met fiction writer Rachel Kushner. On a legal visit with Mrs. Kushner, she shared that she was at California Corrections Women’s Facility to research her fiction novel. We became friends quickly, and after Mrs. Kushner’s novel was published, we were both interviewed by the “New Yorker” magazine because Mrs. Kushner used portions of my life for her fictional main character, Romy. Since that time I was inspired to continue to find ways to serve my community, such as providing legal assistance with paperwork for other incarcerated people free of charge, writing my own book, providing hair care free of charge, becoming a college student with a major in sociology, mentoring in the work program, and assisting blind college students obtain college degrees. I love God today and learned that I am not my worst actions and strive to walk in “Love & Change & Hope.”
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These stories arrive by mail.
Every month, a physical envelope arrives at your door, postmarked from San Quentin Village, California. Inside, you will find original artwork, writing, and recipes from real contributors, along with a personal letter from me, Diane Kahn, founder of Humans of San Quentin, about the people who made them. You read it. You keep it.
Every piece comes from someone serving a sentence. Every piece reminds you they are so much more than that.
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