This special episode of Letters from America's 3rd World Podcast features DC-based community advocates and returning citizens as they discuss how their lived experiences contribute to their support for the ERASE (Eliminating Restrictive and Segregating Enclosures) Solitary Confinement Act of 2023 - called the ERASE bill for short.

ERASE Solitary is the Washington, D.C. movement advocating for the passing of the ERASE Bill, started by Unlock the Box DC, the local affiliated coalition of the national Unlock the Box Campaign. Unlock the Box is a national network of local coalitions of organizations and individuals working together to end the use of prolonged solitary confinement in the United States. Working together, these coalitions of advocates, researchers, and people with lived experience of incarceration aim to bring the US in alignment with the United Nations' Standard Minimum Treatment of Prisoners, which identified isolation for longer than 15 days, 22 hours a day, as torture.

To learn more about the ERASE Act or how you can support this movement to end torture in the Washington, DC visit https://erasesolitary.com/. To learn about how to support this movement in other states, visit https://unlocktheboxcampaign.org/.

What's your Anchor? Dev defines and describes it as a tool to keep you mindful of who you are or want to be, the people in your life, and your vision. Dev and cast discuss how staying anchored was necessary for going through prison and coming out as the person he truly wanted to be. 

Episode is titled, “Crap, I’m in Prison,” inspired by my first journal entry in prison, “Night 1.” It captures the thoughts, emotions, and experiences of Dev's sentencing and first night in prison. Discussions include the judicial & criminal justice system at large, and journaling as a strategic tool for inmates to leverage their time for healing & preparing for release.

What if the third world isn't in some distant, far off land? What if I told you that there's a third world right in your backyard?

Music:

“The Rise”

The Rise by Scott Buckley | https://soundcloud.com/scottbuckley

“Solipsism”

Solipsism by Deoxys Beats | https://soundcloud.com/deoxysbeats1