Correctional Center Poetry Reading

The thing I took away more than anything else was the willingness on behalf of the "residents" to participate. I'm sure it's been stated at least a thousand times, by people with a lot better grounds on which to say it, but I liked that the mind could not be caged. Sure, it needed coaxing in some instances, but synapses were firing that night. The participation and the expression was impressive. It felt (and I hate to be cliché, but it looks like I'm going to be anyway) good to be the catalyst for that. It would have been just as easy for them to say "fuck it. this is stupid." But they didn't.

They were an attentive, well-mannered crowd that seemed to enjoy the poetry being read. From that sentence, one might think I was referring to the last poetry reading done at Neo Progressive Arts. But actually, it describes the audience in which I read in front of at the Stark County Correctional Center this last Wednesday. By the expressions on the inmates' faces and the handshakes we received afterwards to show their gratitude for us coming out, I got the general feeling they took something positive away with them. I hope that by them seeing the bad-ass guys from Neo Progressive Arts read their bad-ass verse, they learned that poetry is just therapy used to express oneself, and that we (and by "we," I am also including the inmates that read) helped tear down the stigma that writing poetry isn't only something that teenage girls do. Now if only that were taught in our schools, then maybe some of those guys wouldn't have been there in the first place. Bottom line is that I had fun and look forward to doing i again in the future.

—Dennis Warner

I feel that on the night of the prison poetry reading, Neo Progressive Arts served it's community well. Individuals who were incarcerated for any number of crimes were given the gift of poetic expression. The success of the reading was evident in the frenzy towards the end of the night. Last minute readers appearing with impromptu poems written on napkins showed how eager everyone was to participate. I'm not sure what kind of tensions exist between inmates, but I would like to think that instead of a fight that might have normally occurred they found themselves instead saying "Hey that was pretty cool... I wonder when we'll get to do that again?"

A week has passed since the reading at Stark Regional Community Corrections Center. I still hear comments about what happened, poetry behind bars. There were whispers of an escape from the corrections center last Wed. night. Fear escaped, went right over the fence, fear of words, fear of feelings, fear of being laughed at for reading words, fear of saying feelings out loud. The words won this battle of souls, some minds flung open like so many prison doors, hopefully never to be put behind bars again.

— Steve Cain

Fear griped us all... would we get raped, would they lock us up with the others, perhaps we would be laughed out of the building....the Stark County Correctional Center was the most unlikely place for a artsy-fartsy poetry reading. To our utter amazement the people we met were actually very nice and rather than being rejected there was an amazing air of acceptance and peace. There was poetry, music and song given by the toughest of guys. We felt a sense of comradery, sensitivity, even compassion. Although "outsiders" we felt as though we belonged on the "inside" if only for a couple of hours. Mike told me he had been writing poetry for years but never did anything with it -- until now! He gets out in a few days and says he plans to attend our next reading. Chuck said, "I don't write or draw, but I love art". He later told me he has a huge collection of "Dragon" art. Even the guards participated with poetry and a saxophone solo! Our fears were dispelled again with the expression of love and the connection o "God above" within much of the verse.

When did we see you prison and not visit you?

"...When we do it unto the least of these my brothers you do it unto me..." ---Yahweh

Upon entering the Center, we went through a metal detector, and then a search, and we passed the "solitary" holding cells which were close to the secure entrance. We were issued visitor badges. Imagine every prison movie you have ever seen. In particular I think of some lame made for TV movie where a bald inmate bends a spoon over with his thumb… and then the inmates riot, and all chaos breaks loose. It wasn't anything like that. We are taught to fear criminals and to lock them up as fast as possible. I admit I was slightly afraid of what might happen. But as we got started with a packed room of 90+ people, my fears eased, and it was evident that this was going to be a good thing. The further along we went the more everyone clapped and became part of a suspenseful respectful crowd of listeners. I was running my camcorder during the readings, and took a seat out in the middle of the room before the residents entered. When they first began to arrive, was a little nervous, and expecting a dagger in the back or something. Too much TV and movies, going through my brain… it was a good productive reading, and I would encourage other fellow citizens to join us next time to be an active part of "criminal" rehabilitation.

—Steven Mathewson