Prison
How teaching in prisons and a new mixtape is inspiring UK rap innovator Jords
Inside tracks — Two years since releasing his sophomore album Dirt In the Diamond on the legendary Motown Records, the South London MC returns with Mixtape J – a bold, independent, 10-track statement. We caught up with him to talk about the new project, his creative process and running writing workshops in UK prisons.
Written by: Niall Smith
In photos: Inmates of the oldest women’s prison in the USA
A new photobook, ‘Women Prisoner Polaroids’, revisits Jack Lueders-Booth’s seminal, humane portrait of women incarcerated in Massachusetts’ MCI Framingham.
Written by: Miss Rosen
Fragile, intimate portraits of California’s imprisoned youth
New monograph ‘A Poor Imitation of Death’ documents and humanises the stories of seven young Californian inmates, aged between 16 and 20 years old, who were tried as adults despite being juveniles.
Written by: Isaac Muk
A journey inside Stalin's Siberian prison camps
Photographer Barry Lewis’s new book takes a look into a history that the Russian government would rather we all forgot.
Written by: Miss Rosen
Inside Britain’s prisons during the deadly heatwave
‘Tortured in sweatboxes‘ — As UK temperatures soared to 40C this week, prisoners were left to suffer in inhumane conditions with a lack of access to water, reports Rebecca Tidy.
Written by: Rebecca Tidy
Has lockdown created more empathy for prisoners?
Life inside — Lockdown could have created a greater understanding of the conditions prisoners face. So why are punitive policies even more popular?
Written by: Andy West
The fight to keep babies out of prison
No births behind bars — Earlier this week, protestors gathered in Westminster to call for an end to the imprisonment of pregnant people, highlighting the serious risks prison poses to mothers and their newborn children.
Written by: Ben Smoke
The Turkish mothers imprisoned with their children
‘It’s a psychological lynching‘ — In the aftermath of Turkey’s coup attempt in 2016, the number of pregnant women and women with small children in prison skyrocketed. Stephen Delahunty reports on the severe human rights violations they are facing.
Written by: Stephen Delahunty
As an Insulate Britain activist in prison, I keep on fighting
‘I haven’t regretted a second‘ — Emma Smart, 44, vowed to stop eating when she was jailed in November for breaching an M25 injunction. Writing on her 26th day of a hunger strike, she explains why she believes her actions are necessary in the fight to save humanity.
Written by: Emma Smart
A brutal portrait of gang culture in El Salvador
Sin Salida — In a new series of photographs, Tariq Zaidi captures the control gangs have over the wider Salvadoran society and the grief caused by the staggering levels of violence.
Written by: Joseph Marczynski
The callousness of Guernsey’s harsh drugs laws
Hypocrisy island — Guernsey’s tough drug laws ruin the lives of not just the people who commit crimes, but also their families. So why is big business allowed to profit off weed grown on the island?
Written by: Rebecca Tidy
How the pandemic is hurting women leaving prison
‘I don’t feel like I have a future‘ — Despite restrictions easing, women prison leavers are still dealing with complications around housing, benefits and mental health exacerbated by Covid-19. It’s made it even harder for them to rebuild their lives after prison.
Written by: Scarlet Hannington
