Community Building and Engagement Program
“The comments from our readers are beautiful. I take pleasure in knowing that my writings have been received well by people, and I also take pleasure in knowing we’re connecting as human beings to people outside these walls. Thank you so much for those comments, they are like fuel for my writing.”
- Alex
On the Same Page: Free Minds Poetry in the Community and Classroom
On the Same Page: Free Minds Poetry in the Community and the Classroom is our peacebuilding and racial equity education initiative facilitated by “Poet Ambassadors,” who are Free Minds members home from prison. They connect with the community by sharing poetry and their own lived experiences with students, businesspeople, faith communities, and civic and community leaders. As facilitators, Poet Ambassadors educate the community and raise awareness of the criminal legal system’s structural racism and impact on communities of color. Poet Ambassadors connect audiences with the work of our Changemakers team (members advocating for system change) by sharing a call to action at each event, building crucial connections that drive movement change. If you are interested in bringing a Free Minds member to your class or group, please fill out our event form.
On the Same Page: Free Minds Poetry in the Community and Classroom
Our monthly On the Same Page: Write Night is a mutual exchange where community volunteers, along with Free Minds Poet Ambassadors home from prison, read and respond to writing by incarcerated Free Minds members. This simple, yet powerful connection helps to create solutions for system change and bridge the divide between the community and incarcerated writers by supporting members’ processes of self-awareness and change -- and to read great writing! Write Nights begin with a conversation facilitated by Free Minds Poet Ambassadors, then transition to reading and responding to poetry written by incarcerated members, which is then mailed back to the incarcerated poet. Click here for more information about upcoming On the Same Page: Write Night events.
