Programs in several California prisons are showing that inmates are more than their worst deed.

Prisons are not nice places, they’re harsh and violent. And yet the inmates are humans like the rest of us and respond to opportunities. In California, 25 inmates recently graduated with a Bachelor’s degree as part of California State University Los Angeles. They each received their degree in communications, thus being able to better have a job and create a better life once they are released, what Dara Yin, one of the graduates called the freedom to create better lives.

There’s another program in 12 California prisons, where known artists teach various aspects of art. There are 15 guest artists for the 15 weeks program offered by the PAC, the Prison Arts Collective, a university-based program offering  arts curriculum specifically for prisons, and a global talent agency, Huxley. Wilo Perron and Brian Roettinger, two of the artists, will teach logo design for example, taking the PAC logo and redoing it going through all the steps that are involved.   There will also be classes in photography, cartooning, screen writing, illustrations, collage making, and even creative mindfulness. The program is aimed to “show the transformative power of art and the redemptive potential of self-expression.” The  offenses of the  inmates in this program do not matter, some have minor offenses some are lifers. Perron and Roettinger say  “We don’t ask them why they’re there or what they’ve done because really the focus of our program is about shifting identities and not having people only be known by the worst thing they’ve ever done. It’s to experience being in a collaborative, inclusive community and experience themselves as artists and students and collaborators and peers.” We need to recognize inmates as people, and programs such as these remind us to.