An account of the activities of Humanity for Prisoners, a 501c3 non-profit organization that seeks to provide personalized, problem-solving services for inmates who don't know where to turn.
All writing is a form of prayer - John Keats
What not to read in the doctor's office
I'm sitting on a little bench in the examining room, waiting for the doctor, who is about to perform my annual physical examination. No magazines allowed, thanks to COVID 19. So, I scroll through the daily email dispatch from the wonderful Marshall Project on my telephone screen.
Item #1, Nearly 79,000 prisoners have tested positive for COVID-19 in state and federal penitentiaries.
Item #2, New Jersey legislators are poised to pass a COVID-19-related measure that would authorize the release of about 3,000 state prisoners who are within eight months of their release date. (Something like that could and should be happening in Michigan, but it is not!)
Item #3, Death row prisoners in California are dying of COVID-19 while the state's attorney general defends dubious convictions and sentences.
Item #4, Patricia Ann Prewitt is the longest-serving woman in Missouri's prison system, sent away for life after being convicted of murdering her husband in 1984. There was little evidence against her—she professes her innocence 35 years later.
Item #5, William Haymon has spent more than 500 days in an adult jail in Mississippi without any charges filed against him and without prosecutors presenting evidence to a grand jury. Haymon is 16 years old.
Item #6, Prosecutors in Miami-Dade, Florida, dropped charges against a county prisoner after a video shows him, handcuffed and with a cane, being attacked by a guard.
I stopped reading, as the door opened.
"Do I detect I spike in your blood pressure, Mr. Tjapkes?"
Grrrrrrrr
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 12:04 PM No comments:
On prisoner deaths, we opt for compassion!
A reader took me to task recently for suggesting that a dying inmate should have been released to spend his remaining days at home. She checked his arrest record, and based on his checkered past, it was her decision that the state did exactly the right thing by keeping him behind bars for his last breath.
I respect her comments and position. I have never written editorials in an effort to convince readers or listeners that I am right. My goal has always been to stimulate discussion on a particular topic.
I think it's important, then, in response to the reader's observations, that I explain once again, our philosophy for helping Michigan inmates. I found it interesting that she checked his "rap sheet." That's something we just don't do. The crimes they've committed and their sorry track records have nothing to do with the quality or depth of our help and compassion.
There's a good reason why I call this "Jesus work." Our Lord was notorious for showing kindness to tax collectors, lepers, adulterers and the like. Said Pastor Randy Hyde, of Little Rock, Arkansas: "…if he saw people who had need of what he uniquely was able to offer, he gravitated toward them and they toward him. In fact, he was quite careless about the company he kept. Why, he just threw his mercy and his grace around as if he had an unlimited supply of it. And the Pharisees and the scribes didn't like it."
Father Greg Boyle pretty much summarizes our thoughts on people behind bars:
"I've never met an 'evil person,' 'cause the minute you start to know what people carry, it breaks through and you stand in awe at what folks have to carry rather than in judgment of how they carry it."
So, that's our attitude here. We offer kindness and compassion to all, no questions asked.
After all, says Pastor Hyde, "If we want to keep company with Jesus, we might just have to re-think our daily agenda and go where he goes, do what he does, love those he loves."
When we moved into our new quarters, we had quite an internal debate among our team as to what quote should be painted on the wall of the HFP conference room. Matt and I settled on this, from Father Boyle:
You stand with the belligerent, the surly and the badly behaved until bad behavior is recognized for the language it is: the vocabulary of the deeply wounded and of those whose burdens are more than they can bear.
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 11:22 AM No comments:
16 years later, whaddaya think, Maurice?
"Hey, Big Bro, I can see us now, working on cases…"
Maurice Carter always called me "Big Bro," pronounced "bruh." We were standing on the banks of the Grand River in Lamont, Michigan…Maurice living in an adult care facility up on the hill.
I'm thinking about it today because it was exactly 16 years ago that I accompanied him as he walked out of prison. He had served 29 years for a crime he did not commit.
In the delightful stage play JUSTICE FOR MAURICE HENRY CARTER, written by Toronto playwrights Donald Molnar and Alicia Payne, Maurice has a poignant chat with me. He's in heaven, and I'm still here on earth. I'm thinking how that chat might be today, as I reflect on our story.
I spent nearly ten years of my life trying to free Maurice. He walked out on July 24, 2004, and lived in freedom for just three months. The Hepatitis C that he contracted while in prison claimed his life.
In our riverside conversation, leaning on a fence, Maurice was fantasizing about that day he and I would be working side by side in an organization called INNOCENT. Years later, that name would be changed to HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS.
Maurice envisioned it as a relaxing atmosphere, with a conference table, where he and I would sit reviewing cases of inmates before making a decision as to whether to help that individual. Well, things didn't quite turn out that way.
Were he and I to have a similar conversation today, he would be speechless, dumbfounded! He could never imagine arriving in the office on a Monday morning, only to have 100 email messages from Michigan prisoners waiting in our "inbox" for a prompt response. And, not to be confused with reviewing one case, our team is responding to 1,500 messages a month!
He would be blown away to know that we have our own offices, a staff of 5, a great list of eager and dedicated volunteers, a panel of doctor and lawyer consultants, and an amazing Board of Directors committed to our mission!
And the messages.
I know he would be proud to hear from James. HFP helps inmates reconnect with loved ones. "My son is back in my life! Thank you."
I know he would feel the heartbreak. Allen died last weekend. Said his ailing mom: "I saved almost a thousand dollars from my disability checks so I could pay for his cremation. Now the funeral home tells me I owe another 700 dollars! Where the hell am I going to get another 700 dollars?"
We found it for her.
"You're doing good, Big Bro!"
Yes we are, Maurice, yes we are. And you started it all! RIP.
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 9:03 PM No comments:
Did this black life matter? Allen Hollins, Jr. 1986 – 2020
I was going to make the statement that, to the State of Michigan, black lives do not matter. But that wouldn't be quite fair, or quite accurate.
Here's what I can say with some degree of accuracy: The State of Michigan doesn't give a damn about sick and dying prisoners!
Yes, my anger is evident today. It's right at the surface, after a tearful telephone chat with the mother of Allen Hollins. Allen died Saturday afternoon at Henry Ford Hospital just 7 minutes before his mother arrived to say goodbye. He was 34.
Readers of this column will remember when we launched an effort to get him released from prison, to die surrounded by family. His mother, Mrs. Yvette Patton, first contacted our office in January. Surgery had been performed a year earlier to remove cancer from behind his eye. Doctors thought they got it all. They didn't. The cancer returned with a vengeance.
Optimistic despite MDOC warnings that efforts to obtain compassionate releases rarely succeed, we jumped through all the hoops. By early spring, HFP had rushed a commutation application, signed by his mom, through the process and into the hands of the Parole Board. Letters were sent to the Governor. Mrs. Patton was assured by the PB that they would get back to her. She's still waiting.
So, here's why I make the board statement that the State of Michigan doesn't give a damn about sick, dying inmates in our state prisons.
If the Michigan Department of Corrections really cared, they'd provide better medical care for prisoners. It cannot be proven, but there's strong indication that if Allen Hollins' cancer had been properly handled from the beginning, he'd still be here today.
Commutation Process
If the Parole Board really cared, applications like that for Allen Hollins, could and should be expedited.
Medically frail prisoner bill
If the State Legislature really cared, lawmakers would have drawn up a reasonable and effective bill to see that sick and dying prisoners get released. Instead, they rewrote and revised a bill, signed by the Governor in May, 2019, that was a cruel hoax. It specified criteria that few prisoners could meet. I checked today on how many prisoners have been released under that bill. Here's the State of Michigan response:
To date zero prisoners have been released under the specific criteria of the Medically Frail Legislation. The Parole Board is reviewing a number of cases that may be eligible, but the definition for "medically frail" in the bill is narrow and has to be applied by the board consistent with the law.
And, finally
If the Governor really cared, she'd do something about it. So far, nada.
RIP, my friend Allen.
We tried.
We really, really did.
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 2:35 PM 3 comments:
Don't blame me! Really?
A Grand Haven businessman is the center of a local controversy today, after posting a 1,200-word diatribe on Facebook. It all began when the local health department insisted that his employees wear face masks. His anger festered, then exploded. His eruption on FB didn't stop at face masks, but went on to express strong opinions on COVID 19, Black Lives Matter, journalists, politics, and much more.
After reading about that outburst, I was heartened to read another article, this by Washington Post writer Max Boot, who was reflecting on the pandemic, as well as blame being placed on the President and a variety of state governors. He recalled the adage, "every nation gets the government it deserves." Said Boot: "Trump and the Trumpy governors did not seize power by force. They were elected by constituents…"
He's singing my song!
You've heard numerous verses of that very song on this blog site.
On ill-advised commutations by the President, and zero commutations by the Governor: If we remain silent, we become part of the problem.
Our role in prison reform: …whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. James 4:17
On resumption of federal executions: A movement within the Catholic Church is calling on all of us to "proclaim on the housetops the dignity of all human life." I've signed it. I'm asking you to sign it.
On prisoner problems: If you are a person who prays, I invite you to remember the thousands of prisoners and former prisoners facing problems like these or worse,
On Injustice: "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance." Robert F. Kennedy
On attitudes re prisoners and prison guards: The ball is in our court. May change begin with us.
On racial injustice: The blame goes far beyond rogue white cops. It includes white prosecutors and judges, but goes even further. It is time for us to lament. To confess. And then to be voices and examples for change. We are to blame.
It's easy to get pissed, like Carl Nelson, and start blaming everyone for everything we don't like. It's easy for me to get that way over all these darn prison issues.
The difficult part is accepting our own responsibility. From prisoner issues to national crises, we gotta stop the blame game. It's time to look in the mirror!
"We live in a culture of blame. People will blame anyone or anything for their misery sooner than take the responsibility to own it and make it better."
Dr. Henry Cloud
Our President and our Governor: Both let us down!
The controversial decision by the President to commute the sentence of Roger Stone has, once again, focused attention on the word "commutation."
Commuting the sentence of a person convicted of a crime is something that both a President and a Governor may do. It falls under the umbrella of granting clemency, which means to give mercy, to forgive. This action allows the Pres or the Gov to show leniency or mercy…an act of grace "based on fairness, justice and forgiveness." The action replaces the original sentence with a less severe punishment.
Readers of this column may remember our efforts to seek a commutation for James Hicks, who was serving a sentence of 50-200 years. Mr. Hicks, who helped state and federal authorities for years while behind bars, was finally granted clemency by former Governor Snyder. Under his new sentence, he was given credit for time served and released.
Here's why we contend that both our President and our Governor have let us down.
President Trump grants clemency, but only to his cronies. He has commuted the sentences of 11 of his political allies now, and these were for serious offenses. Charges like war crimes, murder and arson! Roger Stone, who was just freed, had been convicted of seven crimes, including ones aimed at shielding the President himself.
Regardless of your political persuasion, you must admit that our founding fathers, when setting up this provision in the constitution, probably didn't envision having it be used this way.
Exactly the opposite is true of Governor Whitmer. She doesn't commute any sentences.
Lawyers, advocacy agencies, support groups, friends and relatives, have expended hours of work, blood, sweat and tears, to prepare hundreds of applications for worthy Michigan inmates. All for naught. The stack of apps remains ignored.
Victims' rights groups and prosecutors aside, the release of many of these people would not jeopardize the safety of society. Instead, our prison population and budget would get some much-needed relief. And deserving inmates would be free.
So there you have it: A Republican President who grants commutations for all the wrong reasons; and, a Democratic Governor who won't grant any at all.
Shameful…in both situations! We can and must respond.
On the national level, that can happen at the polls in November.
On the state level, we must make our voices heard, to the Governor and our state legislators.
If we remain silent, we become part of the problem.
The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 8:55 PM 1 comment:
They call it execution. I call it murder!
It saddens me to report that federal executions are set to resume this coming week, after a 17-year hiatus. Three executions are scheduled over a five-day span Monday through Friday, July 13-17. A fourth execution is scheduled to follow in August.
As a person who personally witnessed the execution of a friend on death row in Texas, I'm flabbergasted on two fronts. First and foremost, I can't believe that our Justice Department is doing this at such a critical time in American history. My second point of frustration is that, with the exception of the Roman Catholic Church, the Christian community remains rather silent on the whole issue.
Granted, 1,000 leaders from all faiths signed a statement asking for an end to federal executions. But, again, I point out that this movement was orchestrated by the Catholic Church.
The National Association of Evangelicals dropped their pro-death penalty position a few years ago. I don't hear them raising hell this weekend.
Numerous Christian denominations with long-held anti-death penalty beliefs continue to fight for an end to capital punishment in America once and for all, but their silence is deafening at this hour. My own denomination, from the Dutch Calvinist tradition, is stubbornly mum.
Where are the Franklin Grahams, the Jerry Falwell, Juniors, and the "mega-preachers" who love to make headlines on other issues? Isn't this pro-life?
Says Shane Claiborne, Sojourners Magazine: The charge to keep the death penalty alive is being led, almost exclusively, by leaders who claim to be Christians. It must break the heart of the God who said, "Mercy triumphs over judgment" and "Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy."
To be fair, I must admit that there's a long line of Christian saints who have been outspoken on this topic, including Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr., and now Pope Francis. I love the contention of Cyprian, early Christian theologian, who allowed that "when an individual kills another individual we call it evil, but when the State kills another individual we sanctify it and call it justice."
Anyway, I want to point out to Christian readers of this column, that you can participate in prayer vigils, sponsored by Catholic Mobilizing Network, on the three days of the scheduled up-coming executions. Participation will be via Zoom. Information is available on their web site. The vigils will run from 2-3 PM Eastern on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, focusing specifically on the name of the person to be killed that evening.
I'm saddened by this whole mess.
Quoting from the Sojourners piece again:
It is heartbreaking to hear the news that the Trump administration will attempt to resume federal executions. In a world with so much violence, why would we want to add more? Violence is the problem, not the solution.
Grateful Gregory's gratitude is gratifying!
Gregory Winfrey reminds me of a Bible story.
During his 30-year stint behind bars, he and I became friends. Like many, upon his release, he said, "I'll never forget you." And he never has!
His gratitude for another chance at life comes shining through messages he posts on Facebook on a regular basis. He's not only loving life to the fullest, he's thanking all who traveled this journey with him.
His plight reminds me of this Biblical account.
In his gospel, Dr. Luke tells about the time Jesus ran across ten lepers, all begging to be healed. Never one to turn down making someone whole again, the Lord did exactly what was asked of him. The grateful men were able to return to society.
A short time later, one of them came running back to the Master, throwing himself at Jesus' feet, thanking him and praising God.
Then Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?"
In the past two decades, I've made the acquaintance of thousands of prisoners, and many became very good friends. Invariably, when these men and women get the opportunity to start life anew, they promise that they'll never forget us. For a handful, that is the case, but for the most part, we seldom hear from these people again. It's understandable, and it's OK.
Please be assured that I'm not complaining, or whining. I've held the hands of some of these people trying to start life over again. I know the incredible challenges, the overwhelming emotions. In many cases, the last thing they want to think about is any part of their former life behind bars.
But that hasn't been the case with Gregory Winfrey. He's not only loving life…he's loving those who paved the way for this new opportunity. In just the last day or two, he's posted photo after photo of individuals, couples, and even families who made a difference in his life.
So today, in kindness and in love, after posting my photo, I return the favor and pay tribute to the perfect example of one formerly incarcerated, gratefully getting a fresh, new start.
May God richly bless you and yours, Gregory Winfrey!
You da man!
Posted by Doug Tjapkes at 12:53 PM 1 comment:
When you see a need, it's time to do something!
While pawing through some old stuff, I found an interesting recording the other day.
It was a non-professional recording of the second public performance of HIS MEN, a small male chorus that I started in 1972. With time on my hands during this virus business, that delightful tape led me down memory lane.
It's very easy for me to beat myself up over some colossal business failures. But that musical treat reminded me of two little success stories, both starting with the letter H: HIS MEN and HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS.
I'd love to boast that I'm a visionary, and could predict that someday these singers would perform in the Crystal Cathedral (they did!), or that someday the HFP team would be touching the lives of thousands of Michigan prisoners (they are!). But that would be a lie. I had no idea whether either project would even survive. Their formation was simply a response to a need, a niche, that I had spotted.
HIS MEN
There were many wonderful Christian music groups in the 70s. I saw fine ensembles performing in churches and auditoriums, but didn't see many singing in the tiny churches on the other side of the tracks, the mission stations, hospitals, nursing homes and jails. I saw them singing to the well-dressed crowds but rarely to the widows, orphans, homeless and incarcerated.
And so, we launched a unique music ministry that specialized in reaching out to the disenfranchised. The voices of these men touched lives around the world for 47 years. You might enjoy a presentation by this stellar group…it's my final performance as its director, in the Crystal Cathedral:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gU80f0hIPU
HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS
30 years later, I started another enterprise also focusing on the poor and needy. Again, a perceived need. There were many fine prison ministries already in existence. There were excellent prisoner advocacy agencies aiming for prison reform. But no one was down in the trenches, trying to help the man or woman in our state prison system in dealing with personal problems. So, we set out in 2001 with a goal of helping inmates, one person at a time, with practical needs. The key ingredient was compassion.
Today, it's no longer a one-man show handling a couple calls a day, serving a few hundred prisoners. HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS is a viable organization with its own quarters, a staff of 5, a panel of professional advisors, a board of distinguished directors, and a team of caring volunteers. These days, we may respond to 50 calls a day, and we're serving thousands of Michigan inmates.
But, we'll never vary from our basic philosophy: humble, simple, action with compassion.
There's a lesson here. If we see a particular need, it's important to act
As the Apostle Paul says: …he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion…
Or as Mother Teresa says: Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.
Proud to be part of the "irate, tireless minority!"
Samuel Adams, American statesman, one of our founding fathers, once said:
"It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brush-fires of freedom in the minds of men."
A very nice person who likes what I write recently suggested that I write an op-ed for one of the major newspapers. I sincerely appreciated the compliment and the suggestion, but I opted not to pursue that challenge for two reasons. One, I'm not all that enamored by my own writing; and two, I'm not all that convinced that my ranting and raving makes any difference.
BUT, having said that, on this Fourth of July weekend, I'm grateful for the freedom to write. I am proud to claim membership in Samuel Adams' "irate, tireless minority," and for that reason, I'll keep right on setting brush-fires.
You've heard it in the past, and I guaran-dam-tee-it you'll hear it in the future.
-I'm going to keep on bitterly complaining about the inhumane and widespread use of solitary confinement.
-I'll never let up on the shameless way we feed Michigan prisoners, on two-dollars a day.
-I've been griping forever about the terrible medical care that our inmates receive, and that will never change until there is improvement.
-Mental illness is a problem that won't go away, and we cannot keep ignoring it.
-Defendants, especially those who are indigent and/or of color, continue to be over-charged and over-sentenced in our system of injustice.
-Until we deal with mandatory minimums our prison population will remain inflated.
-Until that day our governor grasps the importance of clemency, and her power to use it, our cells will be occupied by many who deserve freedom.
-Ignoring the ailing and the elderly is not only inhumane, it is immoral.
-It never ceases to amaze me how politicians of both parties ignore the plight of the incarcerated. Our of sight, out of mind.
The list of prisoner "brush-fires" is endless, limitless.
And we're not talking about numbers or statistics, here. We'll talking about moms and dads, aunts and uncles, sisters and brothers.
So, on Independence Day, 2020, this old man continues to warn that things ain't gonna just get better on their own. It's up to all of us.
…whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
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Doug Tjapkes
Doug Tjapkes is Founder of Humanity for Prisoners, a 501c3 organization located in Spring Lake, Michigan. He formed the organization in 2001 based on a dream of his best friend, Maurice Carter, who had been behind bars for 29 years for a crime he did not commit. He enjoyed only three months of freedom. He died at the age of 60 in October, 2004, before he could qualify for a liver transplant. Born and raised in Muskegon, Michigan, Tjapkes is a retired broadcast journalist whose work has resulted in numerous awards and citations between 1954 and 1983. He was a seller of church organs from 1983 until he assumed his new career at the helm of HFP. His avocation is church music. He has served as organist, pianist and choir director at Ferrysburg Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, for more than 50 years. He is the author of a book telling of his ten year relationship with Maurice Carter and their battle for freedom entitled Sweet Freedom. Doug and his wife Marcia have four grown children, and reside in Ferrysburg, Michigan.
HFP Links
HFP Website
Doug's new book - Humanity for Prisoners?
Justice for Maurice Henry Carter
Prisoners Prayer Book
Did this black life matter? Allen Hollins, Jr. 198...