Prison is a rough life for sure. It’s interesting to look at prison though from the various different perspectives. What is the perspective of the prisoners? How about the guards? How about the friends and family of the prisoners and law enforcement professionals? Unless you have been in that environment it truly is impossible to comprehend (if you do have to experience it, hopefully it is as a law enforcement professional and not as an inmate). We put together this list of blogs that are written by prisoners, ex-convicts, and prison officials. We hope you get some insight into prison life from these blogs.
- http://jailhouselawyersblog.blogspot.com/ – The JailHouseLawyer is written by John Hirst who had a difficult childhood and found himself in prison for 35 years. He now fights for prisoner’s rights and has an all around interesting blog.
- http://www.prisonproxy.blogspot.com/ – As a prisoner in Texas Penitentiary, Prison Proxy tells tales about politics and life in prison. This blog contains true stories about life behind bars, with the hardships and trials from inside a place you cannot leave.
- http://www.writeaprisoner.com/inmate-Blogs/Default.aspx – Here you can find blog entries written by prisoners from all around the country. This is a great way to see a variety of views on life behind bars.
- http://prisonwritings.blogspot.com/ – You can learn all about prison news here in Prison Writings. This blog has interviews, prison art, and many more topics covering things that happen in jail. This blog can give you inside information on the life of prisoners.
- http://prison-mom.blogspot.com/ – Do you have someone who has been lost (you didn’t know where they were) but now you find out they are in prison? Prison Mom is a place where you can read related posts and know that someone out there has experienced this as well.
- http://prisonnewsblog.com/- This is a really well written blog by inmate, Michael Santos. He is in prison for crimes related to the distribution of cocaine. He is set for release in 2013 and blogs about his experiences as he tries to make up for the crimes of his past.
- http://stopprisonabuse.wordpress.com/ – Behind the four walls of a prison cell, abuses do happen. Stop Prison Abuse wants to end this. Hopefully, more people will become aware of the magnitude of the problem and support this initiative.
- http://shoshonejoe.livejournal.com/ – If you want to hear real stories about life inside a prison, then this blog is for you. Stories from Prison has those accounts and many other topics. Some are sad, others humorous. You probably wouldn’t be bored reading through this one.
- http://theoldmanprisonpoet.blogspot.com/ – The Old Man: Prison Poet has accounts of a prisoner who truly regrets his actions that led him to prison. This blog isn’t written by him, but by someone who visits him, having a hard time seeing all the suffering on the inside.
- http://prisonindustry.blogspot.com/ – In Prison Industry, you will learn about the prison labor market and total economy. Find out the best and worst paying prison jobs on this blog.
- http://jpminc.org/blog/ – This blog is about Jesuit Christian prison ministries. There aren’t many entries but they are very interesting and offer a completely different look at what it is like to try to minister to inmates.
- http://eddyzheng.blogspot.com/ – You can read through interesting posts written by Eddy Zheng. Eddy is currently facing deportation for crimes he did more than two decades ago. He is an avid writer so you can see that his posts are well-written.
- http://taftcamp.blogspot.com/ – Jeff’s Life is a blog written basically to relieve Jeff of being alone. He is in a federal prison camp having a hard time. Still, this doesn’t prevent him from writing and reminiscing about his life.
- http://www.talesfromthecells.com/ – To help people get in touch, here is a great blog to visit. Tales from the Cells are stories from prisoners compiled by an organization for them to share their messages to those they love. These are true stories, and the reality is hard to accept.
- http://brettsimmons.blogspot.com/ – Brett Simmons works in a prison house, and she has stories to tell. The interesting things happening in her work place are posted here. Although busy, she finds time to write about these things throughout the day.
- http://www.thecca360.com/ – If you want to learn factual information regarding prison management, here is a site to visit. Corrections Corporation of America talks about the programs being handled and the employees that operate them.
- http://lovelettersfromprison.blogspot.com/ – It is so difficult to be in a prison. You lose touch with the world, but still, you shouldn’t forget those you love. Love Letters from Prison wants other convicts to see a brighter future, however dark their current situation may be.
- http://insidethefence.xanga.com/ – Inside the Fence is a blog written by a prison officer. His posts range from rants, raves, to humorous posts about the prison system. This is a good blog to read if you’re interested in the happenings inside a prison.
- http://www.genpop.org/ – Run by volunteers, Genpop is an organization that wants to improve some of the issues faced by prisoners. The blog aims to change the system for the benefit of everyone.
- http://frombehindbars.wordpress.com/ – While this blog is now dead as proclaimed by it’s author, it does offer some interesting insights into the politics inside of prison as well as other issues surrounding prison life.
- http://bluebehindbars.com/ – Blue Behind Bars is created by a mother and daughter team who want to write about many issues. One of those things is prison life, as they have both gone through a stint behind bars.
- http://jonsjailjournal.blogspot.com/ – Jon’s Jail Journal is written by Shaun Atwood. He is now free from prison, but he still continues to write about his former prison mates. He also wants to get the local sheriff fired from his job, probably because of the brutality he suffered under him.
- http://www.clearyourrecord.blogspot.com/ – Titled The Law Stopping Smooth Criminal, this blog aims to give insights on the system that rules the prisoners. You can read posts or see videos on different subjects.
- http://www.billinexile.com/ – Bill in Exile is all about Bill being in federal prison. The writer here is Scott, a friend of Bill’s. You can see and hear some of the letters exchanged between them and read some stories about Bill.
- http://prisonlaw.wordpress.com/ – This blog is written by Sara Mayeux and it attempts to address many issues surrounding mass incarceration and general problems in prison.
- http://eddiegriffinbasg.blogspot.com/ – As an ex-convict, Eddie Griffin knows what it’s like inside the prison. Now, he’s a changed man working as an organizer in the Christian community and writes a book sharing his experiences.
- http://mmemao.blogspot.com/ – Madame Mao is the wife of the world-famous Chairman Mao. This blog connects the news today with dialectics. Although obviously Madame Mao isn’t the real contributor of this blog, it’s still nice to read it.
- http://prisonpete.blogspot.com/ – In this blog, you can read the diary of a prisoner. Prison Pete has accounts of incidences that really happened to Pete. The blogger shares his thoughts here, so you have an idea of what it feels like inside.
- http://www.prisontalk.com/ – Prison Talk gives you information on prisons and the systems around them. You can also find some support if you have someone who’s living in a prison right now. There are forums you can join, so at least, you can talk to others in the same position.
- http://prisonplace.com/blogs/ – Prison Place is another place where you can get support if needed. For families and friends of convicted felons, you can write anything you want to share. This will help alleviate the pain you feel.
