San Quentin News

Written By Incarcerated - Advancing Social Justice

Archives for July 2016

Inmates Showcase Musical Talents at Recital

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Inmate pianists and guitarists performed in a recital: Dancing with the Keys plus Bach, Beethoven and The Blues.
San Quentin State Prison’s Catholic Chapel hosted the March 20 event for about 45 inmates and outside guests as students from the Arts-in-Corrections piano and guitar class displayed their talents.
“Most students didn’t read music when we started,” said guitar instructor Kurt Huget.
Huget’s guitar class performed a wide assortment of music by Bach and Beethoven, plus Brazilian songs, blues and rock. “It’s gone beyond my wildest dreams,” he said.
Huget has been teaching guitar sheet music to the men of San Quentin on Thursdays for eight years. This was the first recital for Huget’s guitar class.
Thomas Washington, Walter Watson, Manuel Miranda and Kevin D. Sawyer were the performing guitarists.
When some individuals struggled during their performance, the crowd cheered encouragement until they completed the song. No one gave up, drawing inspiration from a very supportive audience.
Inmate Dwight Krizman, who is not in either class, played drums to back up other musicians. He also worked the sound for the recital.
“It was an incredible effort on each of the students’ behalf,” said Krizman. “What I found most amazing was the camaraderie.”
Richard “Richie” Morris attended the recital to support his fellow musicians. He plays guitar and used to attend Huget’s class regularly.
“I really enjoyed that it was cool and very casual,” said Morris. “I thought the interaction between the crowd and people performing was entertaining.”
“I was really proud of everybody. We worked hard,” said Huget.
Huget said he would like to do another recital. “It was very successful, I thought.”
Many of the men who performed have little experience playing in front of a live audience.
“It’s not about perfection; it’s about putting the time and work in,” said piano instructor Patricia “Trish” Allred. “The more you play in front of people, the better you get.”
Allred accompanied Phil Melendez performing “Come Home” by One Republic and Noble Butler on “Hello,” by Greg Kurstin and Adele.
Allred had a few hours before the recital to get acquainted with both songs.
“Prelude in C” written by Johann Sebastian Bach was performed as a piano ensemble by Matthew Jaspar, JulianGlenn Padgett, Gino Sevacos and Robert Tyler.
“I’ve listened to Gino play guitar and piano for a few years. This was by far his best performance,” said Sawyer, who attends both guitar and piano classes. “It helps that Trish pushes us to color our compositions with what we learn in her class.”
Allred has been teaching piano classes on Sunday afternoons for a little more than three years. This was the third recital for her classes.
“I was incredibly proud of all of them,” said Allred, adding the performances were “fantastic.”

The guitar class played in unison:

  • Minuet in G, by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Ode to Joy, by Ludwig Van Beethoven
  • Simple Gifts, by Joseph Brackett
  • Girl from Ipanema, by Antonio Carlos Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes, and Norman Gimbel;
  • Vocals – Thomas Washington; Guitar Solo – Kevin D. Sawyer.
  • On Broadway, by Barry Mann, Cynthia Well, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller; Vocals – Thomas Washington.
  • Nobody Knows You (When You’re Down and Out), by Jimmy Cox; Vocals – Walter Watson.
  • Come Together, by The Beatles; Vocals – Walter Watson.
  • Black Magic Woman, by Peter Green; Vocals – Thomas Washington; Guitar Solo – Kevin D. Sawyer.
  • Star-Spangled Banner, by John Stafford Smith.

Individual piano performances:

  • Planet Love, Words and Music by Gino Sevacos; performed by Gino Sevacos.
  • Largo, by Antonin Dvorak; performed by Byron Prudhomme
  • Rikki Don’t Lose That Number, by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, performed by Joey Barnes.
  • No. 12 Bouree, by Bach; performed by Salvador Solorio.
  • Today is the Day, by the Bar-Kays, Walkin’ Away, by Kevin D. Sawyer, Again, by Janet Jackson,
  • Your Daddy Loves You, by Gil Scott-Heron, and Easy, by Lionel Ritchie; original medley performed
  • by Kevin D. Sawyer.
  • Lean On Me, by Bill Withers; performed by Yancy Andress.
  • The Scientist, by Guy Barryman, Jon Buckland, Will Champion, Chris Martin; performed
    by Julian Glenn Padgett.
  • Hello, by Greg Kurstin and Adele; performed by Noble Butler.
  • Come Home by One Republic, performed by Phil Melendez.
  • Moonlight Sonata, by Beethoven, performed by Robert Tyler.
  • Somewhere Over the Rainbow, music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by E.Y. Harburg; Draw Me Close To You, by
    Kelly Carpenter; performed by Matthew Jaspar. He also played the bass to back up other musicians,
    who performed songs accompanied by a band.

Shakespeare Play a Hit with Prison Audience

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A Court Jester’s comical version of the Harlem Shake dance and audience participation revamped Shakespeare’s play “As You Like It,” making it a hit with the San Quentin State Prison audience.
“I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard at a Shakespeare play, and I’ve been to a lot of them,” said Samantha Armacost, a visiting audience member.
“As You Like It” is a comedy/romance/musical play about the exiled Duke Senior (Azraal Ford) finding more happiness in the simple life than his insatiable little brother, Duke Fredrick (Jessie James Smith), who cheated Senior out of land and wealth.
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This version preformed inside the San Quentin Protestant chapel had several unique twists that made the Shakespearean language relatable to a captured audience.
Antwan “Banks” Williams, who played Jacques, said, “We have never seen a Shakespeare play outside of us. We created our own back-stories; we made it accessible, a more urban version.”
Touchstone (Adnan Khan), fitted with a multi-colored jester hat, delivering his lines in a Kermit the frog voice and doing an alternate shoulder-shaking dance kept laughter flowing from the audience.
Director Suraya Keating added, “Everybody really embraced their own character in a new way. I’ve never seen a version of ‘As You Like It’ like this, and it was hilarious.”
Other new twist to “As You Like It” included musician Amiens (Richie Morris) performing several original compositions on his guitar.
Also, actors Belize Villafranco, Morris, Williams and Edmond Richardson invited four audience members on stage to dance. Then Williams, playing the role of Jacques, rapped “DucDane” while stepping.
When someone asked Jacques what is DucDane, Jacques called everyone on stage at the time into a huddle to tell them, “DucDane is an incantation to call fools into a circle.”
Keating says she came up with the audience participation idea in collaboration with Williams.
The San Quentin version of “As You Like It” included other touches like the beat to Tupac’s Hail Mary playing every time Duke Frederick headed for the stage, and Adele’s “Hello” introducing another scene.
“I’ve seen a lot of Shakespeare national productions, and this was by far the best,” said Brad Burkhart, who came from Santa Cruz with his wife to see the play.
“You guys breathed a whole lot of life into Shakespeare and made it accessible,” said Amad Jackson, an actor who was in the audience.
For the incarcerated actors, a “big part of the program is healing through the arts,” said Marin Shakespeare Company’s managing director Lesley Currier, who edited the San Quentin production of “As You Like It.”
Emile DeWeaver, who played Sylvius, said, “Drama therapy help me to stop hiding my emotions. Hide them long enough and it makes you anti-social. A lot of things happen in drama therapy that help us get back social tools people take for granted.”
Williams added, “Prison is filled with characters. Drama therapy teaches there is a back-story to everyone.”
Alex Goldsmith, who played Celia, remembered Khan being nervous when he first preformed in a previous show. She credits drama therapy with helping him and the other men break out of their shells.
“And now he’s (Khan) the star of the show,” said Goldsmith. “You see who men truly are … they break down barriers. You don’t get that on the outside; men being vulnerable and opening their heart, and it’s very inspiring.”
Men of all races and ages came together to make the production a success, including young newcomers David Silva and Kory Morse.
During a question and answer segment after the show, Morse said, “I got suckered into this. A friend asked, ‘Do you want to go to this class?’ I show up, and it’s an acting class. It helped me interact with people, build bonds with people, build a memory with people that we’ll never forget.”
Andrew Wadsworth, who played Charles the wrestler, said, “I have a thug look, and I have thug in me because that’s how I grew up. My insecurities made me think people didn’t believe in me. I said I’m showing them. I give praise to my grandma. She was the only person who believed in me, and when she died … she knew I had a lot of good in me. She’s been gone since 2009, I do everything in her name.”
“Healing doesn’t happen alone. It happens in communities of support,” said Suraya.
To see the play online, go to www.marinshakespeare.org and follow the social justice links.

San Quentin Inmates Perform The Tempest

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Inmate Nythell “Nate” Collins, 40, said acting lessons from Marin Shakespeare Company have helped him understand the human condition of oppression.
“How did he come up with all this stuff?” Collins asked about Shakespeare. “What was his thought process so his work stayed with us all these years, especially with relationships? Shakespeare was a visionary.”
Dozens of Bay Area community members, along with more than 200 inmates and prison staff, came to the chapel at San Quentin State Prison on May 27 to enjoy “The Tempest: A Tribute to Prince.”
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Collins has been at San Quentin since 2008 and has been a member of Shakespeare at San Quentin since 2010. He was Prospero in “The Tempest.”
“Prospero was really manipulative in how he used Ariel to do his mischievous business, but in the end, he learned how to forgive,” Collins said. “It took the people around him to talk to him and change him, just like here with the programs. Everyone has the ability to change into kind and caring people. But, until we cultivate the good things in us, we can’t prosper from it.”
Steve Emrick, San Quentin community partnership manager, said inmates learning Shakespeare produces a public benefit.
“Examining the characters in the plays allows the men to understand their own crimes and the dynamics of their own character,” Emrick said. “For men to be in prison and to put themselves out like that in front of their peers shows they’ve learned a better persona, one better than the gang or tough-guy persona common in prison,” he added.

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The music for the play was scored by inmate LeMar “Maverick” Harrison.
“A lot of us had last-minute changes in our character,” Harrison said. “I wasn’t going to play the part of Ariel as Prince until he died.”
Harrison said his inspiration came from inmate Christopher Marshall, Sr., who played King Alfonso of Naples.
“Shakespeare helps me get in touch with my humanity,” Marshall said. “My character’s main objective is to find his son. In doing so, he comes to the realization that he needs to let those around him advise him, just like I’ve done in my life. I have to trust those around me that they’ll never lead me astray.”
Prior to opening curtains, tensions were eased with jokes featuring Shakespearean themes of religion, sexuality and father/daughter relationships by comedian, inmate Eric Durr.
Lesley Currier of Marin Shakespeare Company gave an outline of the drama. It helped the audience understand how envy, jealousy and revenge affected the relationship between Prospero, Antonio, his younger brother, the King Alfonso of Naples, and Ariel. Currier described Ariel as a spirit with a positive energy who was indebted to Prospero for freeing him after 12 years of imprisonment.
“Forgiveness is one of the many themes highlighted by Shakespeare’s The Tempest,” according to the director’s notes. “What changes in Prospero’s life when he chooses forgiveness and reconciliation rather than revenge and hatred? What changes are possible in our own lives when we choose to forgive?”
The play began with a storm, shipwrecked Prospero on an island.
All the actors spoke their lines clearly, which made it easy to follow the plot.
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“Antonio, the Duke of Milan, stole the dukedom from his brother, Prospero,” Jason Jones said when describing his character. “Antonio relates to my real life as I have experienced a lot of betrayal and to play the other side of betrayal is discomforting. I had to embody Antonio’s character to get an understanding and feel the hurt and pain of victims and to learn my character flaws.”
Reggie Hola who played the Boatswain said, “My character comes from a family of boatswains, which relates to my real life because of my Polynesian culture. Being a boatswain requires the person to know the ins and outs of the sea and to use the stars to navigate the world.”
Later, the inmate actors were asked how they prepared for the play:
“I had a hard time reading,” Jones said. “I didn’t read my first book until I came to prison. And at the prison I came from, people wouldn’t sit down and help a person read; but Luke (inmate actor, Julian Glenn Padgett) helped me.”
“One of the ideas behind drama therapy is to help the healing process,” Suraya Keating said after hearing Jones. “Healthy relationships help people heal.”
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“Showing emotion can bring ridicule,” Juan Carlos Meza said. “Shakespeare allows me to express myself without judgment. I can now do this without judgment. I have enriched my life in ways that cannot be paid.”
“I have learned to be vulnerable,” Vance Farland added, “There have been times in my life where I could have done things in a lead position. Performing Shakespeare has allowed me to get over that fear.”
 
“Telling jokes helps the men,” Durr said chiming in. “I’m impressed with hanging out with the guys. It helps me. I’m getting soft from doing this.”
Ronell Draper said, “It allows me to like people that I don’t normally like. It helps me to build relationships. They pressured me into being nice.”
“This helps me get out of the tough character that I thought I had to be,” Arthur Miller said.

July 2016 News Briefs

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Honolulu, Hawaii — An inmate serving time in a private prison in Arizona has filed a lawsuit over the prison system’s policy requiring all mail to and from inmates to be written in English, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports. The English-only mail policy prohibits prisoners from receiving letters written in Hawaiian and unduly burdens communications between families and their loved ones behind bars, the lawsuit claims.
Maryland — As the state eliminates mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenders, beginning October 2017, about 1,600 inmates will become eligible for release, The Washington Post reports. Hundreds of nonviolent offenders who have been given long sentences over the past three decades will be allowed to appeal to a judge to have their sentences reduced.
Iowa — The state’s high court ruled in a split decision that sentencing juveniles to life in prison without parole is unconstitutional because it amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. Justice Brent Appel wrote that juvenile character is “a work in progress” and that courts should not preclude the chance for juvenile offenders to be released for good behavior by parole boards after they have fully matured.
Brooklyn , NY— A federal judge says sentencing courts should pay closer attention to the effect upon a person’s life when they are sent to prison. The judge believes the collateral consequence of having a felony conviction is punishment enough. So, sending a person to prison instead of giving them probation has “no useful function other than to further punish criminal defendants after they have completed their court imposed sentences,” The New York Times reports.
Washington, DC — President Obama commuted the prison terms of another 42 federal felons in an effort to overhaul the nation’s sentencing laws for drug related crimes, the Washington Examiner reports. Obama already had commuted 348 sentences, which is more than any other president. The closest were Presidents Clinton and Nixon, with 61 and 60, respectively.
Oklahoma City, Okla. — Community leaders and organizations across the state submitted more than 220,000 signatures, more than the 65,000 necessary, for a November ballot initiative that would reclassify as misdemeanors instead of felonies some low-level offenses, such as drug possession and some property offenses of less than $1,000.
New Haven, Conn. — Ten years after Reginald Dwayne Betts was released from prison, he graduated from Yale Law School. While Betts was in prison, he realized he wasn’t being given all his time credits and he didn’t know how to properly apply for them, the New Haven Register reports. “I didn’t do it because I wanted to be a lawyer,” he said in the article. “I did it because I didn’t want to be in another situation where I didn’t know the answers to questions that affected my life.”
University of South Carolina, SC — Nearly half of Black males and almost 40 percent of White males in the U.S. are arrested by age 23, which can hurt their ability to find work, go to school and participate fully in their communities. A new study in the journal Crime & Delinquency provides the first contemporary findings on how the risk of arrest varies across race and gender, says lead author of the study criminology professor Robert Brame. The study is an analysis of national survey data from 1997 to 2008 of teenagers and young adults and their arrest histories, which run the gamut from truancy and underage drinking to more serious and violent offenses. The study excludes arrests for minor traffic violations.
Philadelphia, PA. — More than 40 police officers have been awarded commendations since December for resolving conflicts “without shooting, clubbing or otherwise using maximum force against anyone,” The Associated Press reports. The Los Angeles Police Department recently created a Preservation of Life award. And later this year, the U.S. Justice Department’s new Community Policing Awards will recognize officers who prevent tense situations from spinning out of control.
Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a broad constitutional challenge from Louisiana asking whether the death penalty violates the Constitution. The high court, on the same day, May 30, reversed a death sentence in Arizona, The New York Times reports. In the case from Louisiana, the court turned down the appeal without comment. In the Arizona case, the court reversed a death sentence in an unsigned opinion, saying the jury had not been told an important fact: that the only alternative to a death sentence was life without the possibility of parole.

Sistema de Fianza Necesita Reforma

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El sistema de fianzas que mantiene encarcelados a gente de escasos recursos económicos injustamente, necesita una reforma, de acuerdo a Cantil-Sakauye Tani Jefe de Justicia en California.
“No deberíamos penalizar a la gente de escasos recursos económicos únicamente por ser pobres”, comento Cantil-Sakauye en su discurso anual dirigido a la Legislatura de California.
Esta fue la consecuencia del rechazo a una demanda judicial por la Juez del Distrito de los Estados Unidos, Ivonne González Rogers, el 1 de Febrero en la Ciudad San Francisco, contra el sistema de fianzas en efectivo, notifico The San Francisco Chronicle.
A partir de entonces, los demandantes han presentado una versión más concisa de sus demandas, la cual se enfoca al periodo donde la oficina del sheriff fija una fianza después de un arresto, reporta The Chronicle.
“Necesitamos mas programas de liberación antes de un juicio para establecer un balance en la seguridad y evitar la necesidad de pagar una fianza”, comento The Chief Justice. El mantener a personas bajo fianza no solo es injusto sino también ineficaz para prevenir delitos.
Cantil-Sakuye comento que ha nombrado a Martín Hoshino, Director de administración de las Cortes de California, para encabezar un estudio nacional sobre los programas de fianzas.
Actualmente, existen programas de liberación en 12 cortes locales que mantienen a los acusados bajo supervisión, en vez de mantenerlos encarcelados hasta que tengan la posibilidad de pagar una fianza, reporta The Chronicle.
–Traducción Tare
Beltranchuc y Marco Villa

United States Became More Punitive in Last Three Decades

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The United States has become increasingly punitive, according to a Pew Charitable Trusts 2016 study.
“As measured by the punishment rate, the U.S. became 165 percent more punitive from 1983 to 2013,” reported the Pew study, “The Punishment Rate.”
The increase in imprisonment over a 30-year period was the result of an increase in criminal penalties, measures that sent more offenders to prison with lengthier sentences, the study indicated.
The National Research Council’s 2014 report concluded that “statutes mandating lengthy prison sentences cannot be justified on the basis of their effectiveness in preventing crime,” the study cited.
“Many experts also argue that the increase in imprisonment has reached a point of diminishing or even negative public safety returns,” the study pointed out. “At the same time, research shows that policy choices – not crime rates – drive increased imprisonment.”
The punishment rate accounts for the state’s prison population by factoring the imprisonment and crime rates to assess the relationship between crime and punishment. The punishment rate is calculated by the number of inmates sentenced to a year or more for felony offenses per 100,000 residents of a jurisdiction, the study explained.
“Analysis of punishment rates over time across jurisdictions make clear that the nation has become more punitive,” the study concluded.

Análisis Sobre Niveles de Encarcelamiento

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Los Estados Unidos se han convertido en una nación con altos niveles de encarcelamiento, informa un estudio del Pew Charitable Trust.
De 1983 al 2013 los Estados Unidos alcanzaron un nivel alto en sus sentencias con un 165%, reporta un estudio efectuado por The Pew, acerca del Uso de Medidas Sobre el Índice de Castigo en las Prisiones Relacionadas con el Crimen.
El incremento de personas encarceladas durante un periodo de 30 años fue el resultado de castigos más severos, medidas que enviaron a más ofensores a las prisiones con sentencias muy largas, indica el estudio.
El reporte del Ayuntamiento Nacional de Investigación del 2014 concluyo que “Estatutos que ordenan condenas largas en la prisión no pueden ser justificados en base a su efectividad para prevenir la delincuencia”, menciona The Pew.
“Muchos expertos argumentan que el incremento en la población de las prisiones a llegado al punto en que el incremento disminuirá o tendrá un impacto negativo en la seguridad publica”, el estudio señala. “Al mismo tiempo la investigación demuestra que la elección de pólizas lleva al aumento de encarcelamiento, y no los niveles de crimen”
El nivel de castigo es responsable por la población de la prisión del estado al juntar el encarcelamiento y los niveles de castigo para evaluar la relación entre delito y sanción. El nivel de castigo se calcula por el número de presos sentenciados por felonías, a un año o más por cada 100,000 residentes de una jurisdicción, explica el estudio.
“Un análisis sobre los niveles de castigo a través de las jurisdicciones explican de una manera clara que la nación se ha convertido en un agente de castigo”, concluye el estudio.
–Traducción Tare
Beltranchuc y Marco Villa

TRUST Spanish Anger Management Graduation

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The first TRUST-sponsored Spanish-speaking anger management graduation was held in San Quentin’s Catholic chapel. The ceremony is one of only a few programs exclusively dedicated to the Spanish speakers at San Quentin.
The celebration was nothing like the average self-help graduation that numerous groups put on within the walled city. There was no food, no drinks, and no deluge of musical performances or acceptance speeches. Instead, a soft, soothing prayer by retired probation officer (and outside sponsor and instructor) Erich Plate Montes filled the surrounding space as he and his co-instructor, Arnold Chaves, D. Ed., joined hands in circle fashion with their graduating class.
The calm, quiet atmosphere created by the chapel’s vacant pews, an altar, and relief sculpture of Christ’s crucified body — symbols that normally contribute to the church’s serenity — was analogous to what the men learned during the 12-week course curriculum.
The program was geared to help the men learn “acceptable ways of expressing anger by gaining a better understanding of self,” said Chaves. The men also learned “stress tips” like the “3-second rule,” a self-talk strategy designed to challenge a decision before an action. The program also focused on the importance of communicating and understanding “war words versus win words,” added Chaves.
But the peace and tranquility that both the chapel and Montes’ prayer provided at the ceremony’s start was quickly filled with laughter and smiles as the men, both young and old from different parts of Latin America, relished their accomplishments.
Pablo Ramirez from Guerrero, Mexico, who is currently serving a 34-to-life sentence for attempted murder, said, “I learned that there are four different styles of communication: aggressive, assertive, passive and passive-aggressive. I was passive. I let people walk all over me. I held in my feelings until one day, I exploded.” Ramirez finished by saying, “Through the program I now better understand what caused me to commit the crime that led me to prison.”
Toward the ceremony’s end, Chaves reminded the men of the importance of effective communication and said, “Remember the story of the little girl and her father.” As it was told, a girl had two big, shiny red apples that her little hands could barely manage. Her father asked for one and before she gave one over, she bit into both, whereupon she was quickly criticized for being a greedy spoiled brat. Turns out, all she wanted was to give her father the sweetest one. Effective communication is key and an important concept the 19 graduates learned in the program.
Graduate Manuel Murillo has spent 30 years behind California prison walls — the last three at San Quentin. During these three years, he has been involved in more programs at San Quentin than he was able to during the 27 years he spent at other prisons. And yet, though he learned much through the 12-week process, he thinks there’s still a problem. “There are a limited number of programs offered to the Spanish-speaking community,” Murillo said. “I learned enough English to get involved in other programs, but the rest of the Spanish speakers are left out.”
There’s no doubt that the program was a tremendous help to the graduating men. But given the considerable percentage of the prison population whose first language is not English, the shortage of programs for them creates great difficulty when they have to face the Board of Prison Terms with little to no self-help programming.
These 19 graduates were “hungry to learn” said Chaves. And they gained the tools to “process anger before anger turns violent,” added Miguel Saldana, another incarcerated graduate striving to be a better person and ultimately, a freed one, in a pro-programming institution that has yet to break the language barrier.

Men Graduate from Seminary School

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The Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary (GGBTS) graduated 14 spiritually committed men in San Quentin on June 10.
The seminary provides educational and ministry experience to prisoners under its contextualized leadership development (CLD) courses.
“When you talk about the gospel you talk about God,” said Seminary President Dr. Jeff Iorg. “I am proud of these men. Hearing their life stories and how the program impacted them, I can see the effects of their leadership inside and outside of prison.”
Nine men earned diplomas in Christian Ministries, and four earned advanced diplomas in theology.
“I enjoyed the spiritual leadership formation class,” said Antoine Watie, theology graduate. “It teaches you to be close to God but not to get too far from the people. It showed me what God really wanted me to be and my identity in Christ.”
At the graduation, Watie gave a powerful sermon in front of a large crowd and eight of his family members.
“I knew he had a special gift,” said Mae Thompson, Watie’s grandmother. “I love that he has reached this point in life. Now he can direct the family into the Lord.”
La Quita Germany, Watie’s fiancée, added, “I like to see his progress; he used his time to turn a negative into a positive. He let his light shine wherever he goes, trying to bring people to Christ.”
Ferrari Moody also received his diploma in theology and fired up the guests with his moving words of devotion.
“The classes prepared me for the ministry and to be a part of an organized church,” Moody said. “If need be, it afforded me the tools to start my own. I thank Mother Jay (San Quentin Protestant Chaplain Mardi Jackson) for allowing us to exercise our spiritual gifts in the chapel. That allows us to gain confidence and implement what we learned.
“Having my wife witness me graduate was major,” Moody added. “She had the chance to see my transformation, and that gave me a lot of joy.”
Derrick Holloway and Sunshine Prado addressed the guests and received their diplomas in Christian Ministries.
“It feels good for my mother to see me in this light,” Holloway said. “When I was a kid she used to rub blessed oil on me; I thought she was crazy, because I had my own agenda in life. Now I’m on God’s agenda. I want to be a church planter and reach people who don’t know about Jesus or the church.”
Prado added, “I’m going to get involved in addiction recovery ministries. That’s what God has put on my heart. Having been an addict myself, I understand the effect it puts on a family. Now I can encourage people to seek help through God’s word. I would like to give honor to my mother Sister Betha.”
Billie Prado came to witness her husband’s transformation.
“I never thought I would be a preacher’s wife,” she said. “But here I am. I’m really proud of him.”
Chaplain Jackson awarded a Certificate of Appreciation to Rev. Don Beall, GGBTS CLD National Director, his wife Reta Beall; and Dr. Iorg for their work in the program.
Don Beall is retiring after 10 years.
“It’s not about the color of your skin or your background,” Beall said. “It’s about walking with a changed life, and we received as much from these men as we gave.”
The San Quentin Garden Chapel Praise Team had everyone on their feet singing along and swaying to songs like “Crown Him with Many Crowns,” “Amazing Grace” and “Nobody Greater.”
The CLD instructors led with prayers and gave inspirational words for the graduates.
“It’s a blessing to see these men’s hard work, that can take them beyond this process,” said Rev. Miguel Rodriguez, CLD Director. “They have special training that can lead them throughout their lives.”
Dr. Brice Butler, Pastor of Tiburon Baptist Church, added, “Keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus will give you perception in any season of life.”
Reta Beall closed the ceremony with words of wisdom.
“Keep studying,” she said. “Don’t let the diploma stop you from learning.”

Seventeen Inmates Graduate From Alliance for Change

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After taking classes four days a week for three and a half months, 17 men inside San Quentin completed the Alliance for Change Social Justice Group.
For Isaac Rubio Flores, who spent 18 years in security housing units (SHU) it is the first self-help group he’s ever had a chance to complete.
“It’s uncomfortable for me still (being around) people,” said Flores. “I go into the corner and keep people in front of me. (Alliance for Change) helped me work on my social skills.”
Alliance for Change teaches the different types of justice, like restorative justice and distributive justice.
Alliance teaches parolees more than how not to recidivate, including how “to make positive contributions to society to create a just society,” said sponsor Karen Lovaas, a professor at San Francisco State University.
“Everyone who has graduated from this program and left has flourished,” added Lovaas. “I have not heard of anyone coming back behind bars.”
For Flores, completing Alliance is his first step toward a chance to leave prison since his incarceration at age 17. He has been denied parole since 1996. He says the reasons given were lack of insight and not taking self-help groups. However, no self-help was available to him in the SHU.
Flores said a hunger strike led to his release from SHU and to Salinas Valley State Prison. He couldn’t get into any self-help groups during his time there, so he asked to be transferred to San Quentin and arrived in March 2016.
“I heard they have the most and best self-help groups; that’s why I wanted to come here,” said Flores, adding that he’d waived his last parole hearing to take groups first.
Flores graduated with many men who also had no prior associations. They were: Anthony Wayne Williams, Ronald Bruce Carter, Gregory Miller, Joseph Krauter, Tommy Lee Wickerd, Christopher Gallo, Allan S. Bennett, Edward Gentry, Marcus Henderson, Robert Louis Tolbert , Le Lam, Amir Shabazz, Troy Allen Smith, Marcus Eduardo Landeras, Oscar Jeremy Arana and Dan Cooper.
“We came from so many different patterns of people that the group really united us … It formed a tapestry,” said Krauter.
That tapestry included former Alliance graduates.
“People who inspire me are Charlie Spence and Chris Deragon,” Miller said of his mentors.
Each graduate came to the podium in the ARC trailer on the Lower Yard and expressed what the group meant to them and said something about the next man up to receive his certificate.
Williams said, “I did most of my time in level threes. I’d never been in a group before and now I know what self-help is. And boy do we need self-help.”
Gala said, “Everybody on the same path with me is my brother, no matter what race you are.”
Gentry said, “I learned to understand that a voice is important. Instead of sitting back letting things happen, I got a voice and my voice matters.”
Arana said, “I thank you for believing in us, Lovaas.”
Lovaas took the podium last. She said, “The Alliance for Change social justice class should not end today…we should keep walking.”
Sponsor Mana Jaundoo said, “This graduation had a lot more meaning. It rejuvenated me to want to continue to do this with all things Alliance is going through.”
Volunteer Lindsey French, a San Francisco University graduate, says she got involved in Alliance for Change after taking former sponsor Kim Richman’s criminology class.
“We took a tour and saw we are putting people in prison and we aren’t giving them a real way to get out — so it is our responsibility as citizens. I wanted to do my part in helping with this process,” she said.
Alliance President Isaiah “Raheem” Thompson-Bonilla congratulated the class and said, “You are now members of a growing family of members who are connected.”

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