INNER LIVES PAU L A C . J O H N S O N INNER LIVES Voices of African American Women in Prison With a Foreword by Joyce A. Logan and an Afterword by Angela J. Davis a New York University Press • New York and London NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London © 2003 by New York University All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Johnson, Paula C. Inner lives : voices of African American women in prison / Paula C. Johnson ; with a foreword by Joyce A. Logan. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8147-4254-8 (cloth : alk paper) — ISBN 0-8147-4255-6 (pbk : alk paper) 1. Women prisoners—United States—Biography. 2. Women prisoners—United States—Interviews. 3. African American prisoners—United States—Biography. 4. African American prisoners—United States—Interviews. 5. Discrimination in criminal justice administration— United States. I. Title. HV9468 .J65 2002 365'.43'08996073—dc21 2002014118 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Foreword by Joyce A. Logan vii Preface ix Acknowledgments xi Introduction 1 1 Analysis of African American Women’s Experiences in the U.S. Criminal Justice System 19 1I Profiles and Narratives of African American Women in the U.S. Criminal Justice System 51 A Currently Incarcerated Women 55 1 DonAlda 57 2 Cynthia 64 3 Mamie 78 4 Elizabeth 89 5 Rae Ann 96 6 Donna 107 7 Martha 116 8 Marilyn 124 B Formerly Incarcerated Women 131 9 Bettie Gibson 133 10 Joyce Ann Brown 142 11 Betty Tyson 158 v vi CONTENTS 12 Karen Michelle Blakney 167 13 Ida P. McCray 175 14 Millicent Pierce 183 15 Joyce A. Logan 190 16 Donna Hubbard Spearman 195 C Criminal Justice Officials and Support Networks 205 17 Judge Juanita Bing Newton 207 18 Assistant Warden Gerald Clay 220 19 Grace House Administrators: Rochelle Bowles, Mary Dolan, Annie González, and Kathy Nolan 227 20 Sandra Barnhill, Director, Aid to Children of Imprisoned Mothers (AIM) 237 21 Rhodessa Jones, Director, Medea Theater Project 243 22 Professor Brenda V. Smith 252 23 A Family Story: Renay, Judy, Debbie, and Kito 261 III Conclusions and Recommendations 273 Afterword by Angela J. Davis 285 Appendix A: Self-Study Course on African American Women’s History 289 Appendix B: Resource Directory 293 Notes 305 Bibliography 325 Index 335 About the Author 339 Foreword Joyce A . Logan W H E N I WA S A S K E D t o write the foreword to Inner Lives: Voices of African American Women in Prison, I was humbled and overwhelmed by the request. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would meet and have an opportunity to work with and assist a law pro­ fessor in such an endeavor as a book about African American women in prison. Although I was a “writ writer” in prison, even obtaining a re­ versal of a conviction for a fellow inmate, as I began writing this intro­ duction I worried that my words would not be adequate for such a dis­ tinguished publication. Part of my resolve since my release, however, has been to try to live up to the expectations and encouragement of newfound friends and acquaintances. Professor Paula Johnson has mo­ tivated me to reach even higher. All of us who are featured in the pages of this book have had our lives transformed because of our incarceration, our removal from soci­ ety. We were taken from our families, friends, and communities and placed in environments that were strained and artificial. But, as the sto­ ries contained in Inner Lives: Voices of African American Women in Prison illustrate, we remain your daughters, sisters, mothers, aunts, and nieces. We have been separated, but we are not gone. We may be dis­ tant, but we are a part of you. We may be absent, but we are very much present. This book poignantly conveys this message from African American female prisoners and former prisoners. Being locked up does not elim­ inate our need to believe that we have something to offer and contribute vii viii FOREWORD BY JOYCE A. LOGAN to others. It does not end our need to be productive. It does not destroy our need to feel connected to something good and positive. When I was a young person growing up in Dallas, Texas, education was not emphasized. Though my parents punished me for skipping school, I somehow did not grasp just how critical education was to a person’s success in life. I have since learned that education does not occur just in formal classrooms. Self-education for me began in the county jail as I refused to accept what I viewed as an unjust sentence. To save myself, I sought out the law library, reading cases and learning how to do research, looking for a way to get my sentence reduced. Even though I was never able to accomplish this goal, fighting, reading, and helping others in their legal struggles kept me alive in prison. Being able to help people gave me a sense of self-worth that I had never felt in the free world. The stories shared in this book will educate people in all walks of life who have never been personally touched by someone who has been incarcerated. Our voices speak loudly of our upbringing, families, crimes, and imprisonment. But most resounding are our words of hope and anticipation, the excitement of a brighter future. While my transition to freedom has been challenging, it has proven to be a most rewarding and satisfying part of my life. The strength and courage that we as African American women maintain in prison allow us to tackle the new situations and technologies that we encounter upon our return home. The endurance and patience that African American women must learn in prison carries us through our anxiety and our fears of readapting to society. The lessons that we learn, and hopefully will teach upon our return to society, are ones of faith, determination, and humanity. We are the history, the present, and the future. That is the message that I see in this book—one I hope you will embrace. Preface I H AV E B E E N i ntimately involved in the criminal justice system on the grassroots and professional level for twenty years. As a former prose­ cutor, I worked closely with women and children who had been physi­ cally and sexually abused. In battered women’s and emergency shel­ ters, I worked closely with women who were beaten, homeless, jobless, hungry, and alone. They sought safety and refuge for their children and for themselves, and relief from the strife in their lives. For survival, they sometimes became perpetrators of crimes. Despite my years of involvement on criminal justice issues related to women’s lives, the intensity of my meetings with African American women in prison was repeatedly humbling. Ultimately, what im­ pressed me about the women I interviewed for Inner Lives was their re­ fusal to remain permanently in despair. The women with whom I spoke were more honest than many people in the “free world” about their per­ sonal flaws, naiveté, wrongdoing, and responsibility for harms they caused or contributed to. Even when I was despairing about the mag­ nitude of the difficulties and disadvantages that the women experi­ enced, I was buoyed by their refusal to concede their humanity under such dispiriting odds and conditions. I recognized, however, that the women’s perseverance often came at a high price for themselves, their children, other family members, friends, victims, and others affected by their actions. My desire to communicate my belief in the value of Black women’s lives impelled me to begin this project. At times, I identified with Deb­ orah Gray White, who sometimes found the work on her historical ix