Finding Humanity in the Cracks of Justice
As we approach the end of 2025, I’m reminded of the challenges many News Inside readers have shared with me this year — from the strike in New York to the lack of prison jobs in North Dakota — issues that significantly impact the daily lives of people in prison. Throughout it all, we remain committed to delivering accessible, relevant information. As part of that mission, and to ensure that our content truly meets the needs of incarcerated people, we conduct an ethnographic study every two years with the help of incarcerated ambassadors who survey their peers.
What We Learned This Year
Our previous studies identified three primary themes that incarcerated people said were important to them: family, faith and freedom. These themes remain powerful in this year’s survey, which was conducted by Rebecca McCray, an intern with The Marshall Project this summer. People who responded to our survey shared stories of missing loved ones, wanting to be present for their children, dedicating time to prayer, and working tirelessly on their cases in hopes of release.
This year also revealed a striking new theme: altruism, especially among women who responded. As Penny, a woman incarcerated at Chillicothe Correctional Facility in Missouri at the time of the survey, told us, “I want to help people like me, who have fallen through the cracks.”
Another woman at the same facility exemplifies this spirit. She carefully shares her copies of News Inside, keeping one “mint condition” hard copy from before the facility began scanning all mail. She allows others to read it only under her supervision, treasuring this connection to the outside world.
What’s in Issue 21
This issue embodies the same themes of survival and resistance that we hear from readers, whether they’re participating in our survey, writing us a letter, or responding to a Reader to Reader prompt. In “When the ‘Diddy’ Case Hits Home,” Joseph Wilson reflects on childhood sexual abuse through the lens of the Sean Combs trial, explaining how victims can appear complicit when they’re actually trapped. Dorsey Nunn’s piece, “Cops Took My Christmas Bike. Now I Give Kids the Freedom To Ride,” shares how losing his bike as a child led him toward prison — and how he transformed that pain into decades of holiday bike giveaways for children with incarcerated parents. We also explore how AI could reshape prison life in “From Surveillance to Robot Guards: How AI Could Reshape Prison Life,” which examines robot-led searches and predictive surveillance while raising critical questions about privacy, bias and control.
Issue 21 also includes all our regular features: In the Spotlight, “Peeps,” Reader to Reader, our crossword puzzle and more.
Check out our PDF to enjoy the same material we send inside.
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Want your loved one(s) to receive free future copies of News Inside? Fill out our registration form for individuals. For corrections staff or community members seeking bulk shipments of News Inside, please email your request to newsinside@themarshallproject.org.
