“Poetry Behind the Walls gives voice to the voiceless – it opens a line of communication between incarcerated youth and those of us in the so-called ‘free world.’ It is a crucial opportunity for youth to express their thoughts, feelings, emotions. And, an opportunity for us to listen and learn. Hear them…”

– Dr. Nancy A. Heitzeg, St. Catherine University

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“What makes Poetry Behind the Walls so powerful is the voices of the youth within it, voices that are often silenced in other arenas or made to believe they are not important. Here is an opportunity not only for incarcerated youth to honestly share their experiences but for the readers to learn, reflect and act.”

– Joanna Lowry, Neighborhood House

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“This book series provides a powerful outlet for incarcerated children….young human beings who have made a wrong turn. This collection of poetry, illustrations, stories and more is heartfelt, insightful, and inspiring. Their youthful expressions of remorse and their hopes and dreams for the future allow us to really “see” them beyond the bars and shackles.”

– Karima Amin, Founder and Director of Prisoners are People Too

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“Poetry Behind Walls is a powerful contribution of authentic narratives that exposes everyday life experiences of incarcerated youth. This anthology is opportunity for the artists to have their voices heard and art seen and for all of us as cultural workers to listen, learn, reflect and act to stand for justice. Right here. Right now.”

– Dr. Caroline Kaltefleiter, SUNY Cortland

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“It is unconscionable to lock kids up. Poetry Behind the Walls is a communique from those behind bars who should not be there. It is a statement on the wrongs and the harms of the prison-industrial complex. And it provides testimony on the pains of imprisonment as experienced by youth and teens.”

– Dr. Kevin Walby, University of Winnipeg, Criminal Justice

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“Poetry Behind the Walls is a courageous publication working at the intersections of art and social justice to give voice to incarcerated youth. The efforts of the authors and editors should be applauded as they breakdown barriers, wage principled critiques, fill the world with hope, and provide a platform for personal and political expression.”

– Dr. Jason Del Gandio, Communication, Temple University

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“I am thankful for the contributing authors of Poetry Behind the Walls for their fierce commitment to truth-telling in a time where the voices of young people refuse to be silent. Despite their circumstances, they demonstrate the necessary call to change the human condition while many sit by, still fearful of the oppressive power of state-sanctioned violence. They remind us that we can never be afraid and our fighting spirits cannot wane.”

– Dr. David Stovall, Education, University of Illinois, Chicago

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“These poems are a note slipped under the door, a seed growing in the cracks, a message from the hard cells and hallways to which childhood has been exiled. Most importantly, they are medicine for the writers themselves, proof to the world that they are more than a number.”

– Ricardo Levins Morales, Artist and Activist

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Sports. Love. Home. Hood. Food. Pain – the only thing that separates the poetry in this work from the poetry of other youth is that these bright minds are incarcerated. We would do well to read and remember what its like to be a youth and consider what it must be like for them, since they are not free.”

– Dr. K. Animashaun Durce, African-American Studies, Syracuse University

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“Poetry Behind the Walls includes the words of thsoe who most need to be heard: imprisoned children and teens. Their skills are evident and the cultural need for their stories and wisdom is crucial. These youth have been marginalized and near forgotten, so their voices must be heard on the other side of the prison walls.”

– Dr. Don C. Sawyer III, Assistant Professor, Sociology, Quinnipiac University

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“Poetry Behind the Walls gives us a powerful glimpse into the talents, passions, and humanity of our incarcerated brothers and sisters. The project is a wonderful example of the power of the Arts to humanize those we have called ‘others’ and to nudge us all toward becoming agents of social justice.”

– Dr. Joe Lewis, School of Education, Hamline University

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“Poetry Behind the Walls” is an essential literary tool that can be used to help dismantle the larger systemic issues of ending mass youth incarceration and the school to prison pipeline. The poetry and creative arts pieces in this book represent the souls of youth impacted by incarceration. It captures the beauty within each young person’s process of self-empowerment and liberation.”

– Emilio Lacques-Zapien, Youth Organizer, Youth Justice Coalition

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“The work in Poetry Behind the Walls helps readers remember that incarcerated youth are thinking and feeling individuals with the same aspirations and goals as other children. They are not merely statistics to analyze or incorrigible people to forget and discard. Personally, the poetry and autobiographical sketches in this volume allowed me to feel in my body the fear, anger, and sadness that these kids are experiencing. Anyone concerned about the prison industrial complex, school to prison pipeline, and incarceration practices would do well to familiarize themselves with this publication if for no reason than to be reminded that real people are suffering in prisons, jails, and detention centers.”

– Dr. Scott Hurley, professor of Religion, Luther College

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“Fierce and brittle words that read like efforts to bend the prison bars. In places of isolation and darkness, the struggle of these youths to reach to the light incites an aches for all the promise of their lives and  the commitment to create a world that will welcome them.”

– Barbara Madeloni, Teacher Educator, University of Massachusetts Amherst

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“Poetry Behind the Walls provides an important outlet for youth victimized by the supposed criminal justice system. As creative outlet and space for expression this publication provides a means for the poets to empower themselves and resist.”

– Dr. Sean Parson, Assistant Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Northern Arizona University

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“Malcolm X once exclaimed , ‘You’ve been hoodwinked. You’ve been had. You’ve been took. You’ve been astray, run amok. You’ve been bamboozled.’ He could just have easily been talking about the incarcerated youth writers in Poetry Behind the Walls as well as the ignorant people that think children deserve to be thrown in the hoosegow. This excellent collection of imprisoned voices kept me returning to the question: which of these kids will be the next Malcolm X?”
– Dr. Joel Helfrich, Hobart & William Smith College

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“From genocidal land grabs and enslavement to COINTELPRO and public policies the late great Derrick Bell once described as having the same impact as ‘weekly, random, round-ups of several hundred blacks who would be taken to a secluded place and shot,’ the voices of those contained in this volume are those meant to have been silenced long ago. That these voices remain able to convey their suppressed strength and beauty inspires a fear matched only by that which is generated when people organize around these ideas, concerns, issues, and spirits.”

– Dr. Jared Bell, author of “I Mix What I Like: A Mixtape Manifesto”

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