Greetings friends! Welcome to double issue, 24.11/12, of The Beat Within. As always, you wonderful readers will be getting a one-of-a-kind snapshot of amazing writing and art from various institutions from around the great state of California and beyond! We truly appreciate all the hard work that goes into making this publication a success, starting with you facilitators and volunteers who support the amazing writers in our writing and conversation workshops, to those who find the time independently to reach out to us with their art, stories, poems and reflections. A big thanks to all of you.
It’s been a while since we published the reflections of our hard-working and dedicated interns over at Urban High School of San Francisco. We’re so honored to be in community with these students, who have been transcribing pieces for The Beat Without and supporting our publication. Below, Marina details how her perspective of writing has shifted to be empowering and therapeutic, while Robert offers us a glimpse into how our environment and community shapes the person we become. Both of these thoughtful writers truly step up with their important perspectives. Give it up for Marina and Robert!
The Power of Writing
Before I began to transcribe letters for The Beat, I felt an extreme distance between incarcerated individuals and myself. I had a mental border dividing my young innocent self with the incarcerated populations of our country. I didn’t think that there could be any connections between our lives at all. Yet, after transcribing many letters, poems, song lyrics, short stories, and more, I clearly understand that we are simply all human in the end.
Even though I have not gone through anything close to what these incarcerated individuals have, it was important that I was able to connect with some of their stories. I was able to connect with aspects regarding mental health, as I have struggled with this in the past, and continue to balance my mental strengths and weaknesses. I was able to connect with their feelings of being lonely, lost, or making steps to re-discover themselves.
While I transcribed each packet every week, I felt completely engaged. I wanted to read more. The most important part to me was that each piece of writing I read was real. It felt special to be able to connect with these real people and real stories.
God was a major figure in many of the pieces I read. I have never been religious, but through reading multiple pieces that honored God, and used His presence to work through their incarceration, I realized how important faith can be and how I should try to look for some aspects of faith in my life. In many of the pieces I read, I learned that for the incarcerated individuals, faith was the one intangible aspect of their life. Their faith was the one part of their pre-incarceration life, they could transfer into prison. Their faith was a part of their outside life they could hold on to. As I read, I realized that religious or spiritual faith allowed the incarcerated men/women to feel the slightest bit of liberation within the isolated walls of their prison cells. I noticed how their faith drove them to write, and in many of the pieces I read, it was faith that told them to begin to change their ways.
It was truly inspiring to see how TBW (The Beat Within) really does change lives, perspectives, and mindsets. The power of writing is so strong, that once a human is bonded with its power, the capabilities and opportunities seem endless. I am a teenage girl who usually writes for school, and that’s it. I don’t write for fun or for a cause, it simply isn’t a pastime of mine.
But, working for TBW has awarded me a certain appreciation for writing that is completely new to me. Through listening and writing down these stories by incarcerated individuals, I now understand how therapeutic and important writing is for everyone.
I want to write now. I want to write about my problems, what I struggle with, my joys, my interests, my dislikes, and more. I believe that writing could truly help me become a better person and find some peace within myself. I thank The Beat Within for inspiring me to continue writing, and to find something bigger than myself to believe in.
-Marina, Urban High School, San Francisco
The Importance of Structure
I have not talked with or read pieces by an incarcerated individuals before. My only knowledge comes from reading the news and various articles that touch on their experience. Often times documentaries, news articles, and other publications highlight only a small community of individuals. It is tough to know what my expectations were before this, as well as my preconceived notions on incarcerated individuals because the topic does not come up in my day to day life. And when it does, I rarely sit down and have a conversation about the problems with the criminal justice system. I normally just let it go by and not think about it.
Christopher Maxwell moved me. He had a lot to say to the next generation and to the readers of his pieces. I could feel that he just wanted to help and share his own experience. He was passionate and just wanted to help. I believe that if he was out of jail now, he would make a big difference in the world. There are people like this that have sincerely changed that need a second chance at life. He would help the problem, not make it worse.
I learned a lot more about incarceration, and its effect on the human experience. Many pieces that I transcribed were telling the reader to learn from their mistakes. A large percentage of the writers were wanting to help people out there not make the same mistake that they did. There are a lot of people that are locked up that want to help, and the constant realization that you are still behind bars is diminishing. It takes a certain type of person to keep fighting and keep trying to make a difference in their own life and in other peoples lives. This constant realization of having more time to serve would defeat me. Only if these individuals could be recognized.
Yes, my opinions have changed about the incarcerated individuals, and the justice system. After someone serves a long amount of time, I believe that they can change. Often times you can forget about those people. There needs to be more programs like the BWO (The Beat Within) across the country to get people to reflect on their lives. Writing is a powerful tool that people can use as a platform for self-growth.
I recognized the importance of where you grow up and the environment that you grow up into. The importance of a strong family structure and community around you can make anyone’s life better. I often take for granted the community and family that I have grown up with. I took for granted the luxury of being able to play sports outside with neighbors and then coming inside the house to have a meal prepared by my mother. The structured family that I am a part of has shaped my future self. If this structure was not there, I would not be the person I am today.
-Robert, Urban High School, San Francisco