Art will heal the world (Brazilian prison edition)
To ease overcrowding, a prison in Brazil has announced a program that will shave time off your sentence for reading books.
If you qualify for the program, you can get four days off your sentence for each book you read (and produce a legible essay) up to 48 days per year. Here’s my thinking:
Mark Twain said, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness”
Of course many in the world, especially the poor, never have opportunity for travel, to see life through another man’s eyes. I know from my own experience that reading books can often serve the same purpose, to open your mind and heart to the world. How can you hurt or exploit your fellow man after reading To Kill A Mockingbird or Les Miserables or Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows or Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee?
I am convinced that the more you read the more you serve the principles of mercy and justice and humility. I have great hope for the people running this program and for those who participate.
- Jen
June 28th, 2012 at 9:04 am
In case you haven’t heard of it, there’s a local non-profit that makes sure prisoners get books across the country. It doesn’t shave any time off of their sentences, but still, a worthy cause. http://www.bookstoprisoners.net/
June 28th, 2012 at 9:12 am
Wow; that does sound like a great program. Nicely said about reading (by both Mark Twain and you Jen). The other day my husband and I were cleaning our bookshelves and donating some books, and we debated over one, but decided to keep it because I said: This is really the only book we have about that part of the world. And it struck me (again, as it often does) how much I DO use my books as a way of traveling, of opening my mind about other places and cultures.
June 28th, 2012 at 8:23 pm
Jen, you’re wonderful and so is your blog
June 29th, 2012 at 3:22 pm
This is a wonderful program. I wonder if we could convince judges to go along with this idea here?
June 30th, 2012 at 10:57 am
This is a fantastic program. One of my best friends is in a federal prison right now, and he’s become an avid reader. In fact, I just sent him a book shipment from Amazon today. I wish he could get some time shaved off his sentence for reading!
And, whenever I see “Brooks was here. So was Red,” I get a tear in my eye. Love both the novella and the movie.