THE PRISON BEAT
Incarceration is fundamentally uncomfortable. There are those who seek comfort in the prison environment, but as has been my custom, I choose to go in the opposite direction of the crowd by embracing the discomfort. I’m stretching myself and venturing out of my comfort zone, including in my writing.
Up to this point most of what I have written has been in the categories of personal reflections, opinion pieces, and storytelling. While I have reported on what has transpired in my incarceration experience for my family, friends, and members of Congress, my writing has not risen to the level of journalism. At best, it would qualify as Op-Ed, by design. To continue growing as an observer, thinker, and writer, I intentionally put on a prison journalist’s hat with a lengthy piece on health care at Thomson and in the BOP.
In my article, “Health Scares,” I began by walking through the steady stream of reports making national news in 2024 about the substandard delivery of health services throughout the BOP. In Bureau facilities coast-to-coast, damning reports from federal court judges and the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General used language like “recurring policy violations”, “operational failures”, and “dreadful conditions” to describe the health care received by the men and women in BOP custody. The end result of this malpractice and mistreatment has been higher rates of suffering and mortality.
I then shared the detailed stories of three of my fellow campers–Remi, Bobby, and Smilie–who were adversely impacted by treatment from the Thomson staff that crossed the line from neglect to abuse. Remi was made to work when he had a documented severe hernia. Bobby suffered nerve damage and partial paralysis due to a disease contracted through a BOP flu shot. And Smilie narrowly avoided a fatal cardiac event brought on by stress created by the behavior of several officers. The cases of these men are indicative of the disrespect and dehumanization that is endemic in the culture of Thomson.
The piece concludes with a call for oversight, accountability, and societal reflection. It reads:
“Remi, Bobby, and Smile made poor decisions that resulted in their incarceration. Once inside, along with their fellow prisoners, they must accept that they had to go to prison AS punishment. But what neither they nor any other American should tolerate is the inhumane and counterproductive idea that we send our citizens to prison FOR punishment, especially at the hands of those who are charged with their health and safety.
“The people in our prisons are still people, with homes, families who love them, and plans for the future. Temporary removal from their communities does not equate to removal of their humanity. In a free and advanced society, the satisfaction of basic needs, including access to health care, should be treated as a fundamental right. It is a scary thought that we would treat health as a privilege that can be capriciously withheld in judgment for the worst things we’ve done.”
Having explored new territory with the writing, I turned to outreach. I greatly respect the reporting that The Marshall Project and NPR/WBEZ Chicago are doing on the criminal legal system in general, and Thomson specifically. Therefore, I sent “Health Scares” to one of the leaders at The Marshall Project and a highly accomplished journalist at NPR, along with a cover letter respectfully requesting their feedback. I want to continue refining my craft, and although it is uncomfortable to put myself and my work out there for potential criticism, the possibility of gaining valuable insights is worth it.
I am already a published, award-winning writer, but I know that I am just getting started relative to the experts from whom I seek to learn. The opportunity to embrace discomfort is a gift of incarceration. I’m leaning in and wrapping my arms around that gift.