The New York State Prison agency has revoked a policy that prohibited incarcerated writers and artists from publishing their creative work. This policy, which was put into effect on May 11, mandated a rigorous approval process for publishing creative content outside of prison and allowed prison superintendents to block works that violated broad rules.
The Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) clarified that the directive was not meant to restrict free speech or creative pursuits and pledged to engage with stakeholders to revise the policy.
The reversal occurred a day after New York Focus revealed the policy, and the department acknowledged that it had been misinterpreted.
Patricio Robayo spoke with John J. Lennon, a journalist and a Person who is incarcerated serving a life sentence at the Sullivan County Correctional Facility, about the challenges he has faced and could face in publishing his work.
John is a contributing editor at Esquire and a contributing writer at the Marshall Project. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic, Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and elsewhere.
Photo by: Christaan Felber