Introducing Tips from the Inside

COVID-19 has forced many people to self-isolate and quarantine. Even as some states begin slowly to open up, the reality is that we will all be practicing physical distancing and other measures for some time to come. With so many people struggling, we all want to be helpful. Four people with experience coping when you don’t have a lot of control over who you can and can’t see and when you can’t leave a small area have put together tips to help during these stressful times.

What many have experienced in the last several weeks is the tiniest taste of the dehumanizing effect of mass incarceration on individuals, communities and our country. The Tips from the Inside authors were four of the over two million human beings behind bars on any given day in the United States. As you can see from their bios, it doesn’t define them. The inconvenience, stress, and disruption of stay-at-home orders is not prison, but the tips — some small things, some profound — apply across settings. 

COVID-19 has challenged everyone’s assumptions about how the world works. The authors invite you to re-examine your perceptions about people who are or have been incarcerated. And then get involved.