Unforget Me: Writings and Stories from Incarcerated Students Heather Erwin

In episode 3 of the Unforget Me podcast you will finally hear a new voice.  I talk with Sue Hutchins, a retired mental health professional and founder of the non-profit Living Beyond the Bars (https://www.facebook.com/Living-Beyond-the-Bars-1480415388701166/), an organization that offers support to people who are incarcerated and their families.  Sue is the author of the new book titled Bleak Walls, Bright Minds (https://www.amazon.com/Bleak-Walls-Bright-Minds-their/dp/B08P1FC8PR).  In this self-published work Sue has collected writings submitted by people incarcerated across the Iowa Department of Corrections who are serving a sentence of Life Without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP).  In our interview we talk about Sue’s book and the work she and other local advocates are doing to mitigate life sentences.  You’ll also hear Sue read from her book.

If you’d like more information on Legislation related to sentences of Life Without the Possibility of Parole I suggest checking out The Sentencing Project’s website (https://www.sentencingproject.org/search/Life+without+parole).

Please leave a message for me at anchor.fm/heather-erwin if you’d like to qualify to receive a signed copy of Bleak Walls Bright Minds or if you have any questions or comments about this episode or either of the first two.  I look forward to hearing from you!

In this episode of Unforget Me we’re going to listen to a song written by Michael Blackwell two years ago that feels even more relevant today.  You can learn more about the Oakdale Community Choir, which helped bring Michael’s song to life, by visiting their website at: https://oakdalechoir.lib.uiowa.edu.  We will also read a touching published memoir piece featuring memories of some favorite places from childhood written by Richard Winemiller.  Richard has served over 30 years of a life sentence in Iowa and has been dedicated to learning, both formally and informally, throughout most of his incarceration.  Richard’s essay titled Isabella Lake:  A Place of Firsts, is published in Kirkwood Community College’s arts and literature journal The Cedar Valley Divide, 2020 edition. You can learn more about Cedar Valley Divide here: https://www.kirkwood.edu/programs/degrees/cedar-valley-divide.  You can look forward to hearing more from both Richard and Michael in later episodes.  We finish the episode with a poem written by Gilbert Ellis in response to the work titled:  The Prison Cell, written by poet Mahmoud Darwish.

This first episode of Unforget Me features a class assignment about solitary confinement by a student currently living the experience, a poem about the masks we hide behind, and a poem about missing out.