Literature often imagines dramatic moments of moral collapse.
Life is usually quieter.
Sometimes we become strangers to ourselves one compromise at a time. Sometimes exhaustion, grief, fear, or survival slowly erase the person we intended to become. (And the worst thing that a person in prison can become is the stereotype of people in prison!)
Award-winning poet, playwright, and essayist. Author of four books of poetry, "Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass: Remembrance of Things Past and Present"; "Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats"; "The Black Feminine Mystique," "The Black Blood of Poetry," and a novel, "Streets of Rage," and a collection of short stories, "Conundrums: Stories of Law & Justice," written under his pen name Easy Waters. All four books are available on Amazon.com. Waters has over 25 years of experience in the criminal legal system. He is a change agent for a just society and a catalyst for change.
Sometimes, the only way not to become a prison stereotype is by being intentional about creating a new paradigm.
Being wide open to self-reflection and accountability. Becoming cognizant of, and moving within, the liminal, threshold opportunities of incarceration, and post-incarceration.
Committing to spiritual, emotional, and psychological transformation.
Also, for me, being fiercely wed to a Christ-centered faith walk.
Finally, being determined to leave a positive, prison-stereotype-shattering imprint.
Sometimes, the only way not to become a prison stereotype is by being intentional about creating a new paradigm.
Being wide open to self-reflection and accountability. Becoming cognizant of, and moving within, the liminal, threshold opportunities of incarceration, and post-incarceration.
Committing to spiritual, emotional, and psychological transformation.
Also, for me, being fiercely wed to a Christ-centered faith walk.
Finally, being determined to leave a positive, prison-stereotype-shattering imprint.
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