A message from your new Editor-in-Chief
As we embark on a momentous new era of transformation at San Quentin State Prison, I am proud to report a changing of the guard at the San Quentin News. I have decided to accept the role offered to me as Editor-in-Chief of this historic newspaper.
It was not without deep and deliberate contemplation that I accepted this challenge. I made sure that I was willing to dedicate myself to continuing the legacy of this award-winning publication. I made sure I had the support of the SQNews team, both the incarcerated staff and our volunteer advisers. I hope that I also have your support as readers of the San Quentin News.
I consider it a great responsibility to serve as a voice for those in cells without a voice. I take seriously the duty to influence the narrative around incarceration so that people in the outside world see all of us as human beings. With that in mind, I will work to ensure that you continue to receive quality news and information from a diverse group of writers who understand the needs of the incarcerated population.
Over the last 16 months, I have enjoyed each role I have played in serving this community. I was a proud staff writer, Journalism Guild Chair, Wall City Magazine manager, and I am proud to be the lead anchor on both our Criminal Justice News broadcast and The Pulse. Each of these roles has helped prepare me to serve my future community when I am finally free to return to the larger society. And they have been opportunities to make amends for my past crimes in new ways.
I give a lot of time and energy to further the goals of this organization because I believe in its power to promote transformation. The San Quentin News changes lives, and in doing so it increases and enhances public safety. We do this by showing incarcerated people what transformative programs are available and what is possible if they apply themselves. We strive to inspire incarcerated people to journey down a road to rehabilitation.
I know my new role comes with great responsibility to incarcerated people across the state and the country who love this publication. I inherit a legacy from, and owe a debt of gratitude to, all those who have come before me over the last 83 years to make this newspaper what it is today. Among those are the Editors-in-Chief of the more recent history of the San Quentin News: Michael Harris, Arnulfo T. Garcia, Richard “Bonaru” Richardson, Jesse Vasquez, and Marcus Henderson.
I believe that change is good. As the change in leadership of the San Quentin News intersects with the pending transformation of San Quentin prison to a rehabilitation center, I perceive an opportunity to continue transforming; becoming a better and better newspaper and a better and better person.
