As you can imagine, the holiday season is often a really rough time for folks inside prison. Whatever holidays you may or may not celebrate this time of year, our incarcerated members are often denied the ability to celebrate their traditions in the ways they choose, whether their desire be to celebrate the returning of light for Solstice, the miracle of Hanukkah, the birth story of Jesus, the tradition of Kwanzaa, New Year’s Day, or something else. All too often our members do not have family and friends to reach out to them with cards or visits, making this time particularly isolating. The cards you will make bring moments of joy, connection and kindness to our members while telling prison staff that people on the outside are watching.

Lastly, but most importantly, the holiday card party you are organizing is about planting a seed of hope. There is strength in hope, and when we fight together, we can win. We do all of our work knowing that once there were no prisons, and that day will come again.

Join the Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies for a Black & Pink holiday card making party! More information can be found here.