Search About Newsletters Donate
Life Inside ·
Filed 6:00 a.m. EDT
10.04.2024

Life Inside, Remixed: What 90 Days in Jail Taught a Poet About America

Ravi Shankar was born in D.C. to South Indian parents. But it took going to jail for him to fully understand what many other Americans of color face.
By The Marshall Project

Pushcart award-winning poet and English professor Ravi Shankar reflects on the “casual sadism” of life in a Hartford, Connecticut, jail. The 90 days he served for a misdemeanor deepened his understanding of systemic racism in America and showed him how seemingly small things like the height of a basketball hoop can result in chaos.

The essay animated by Grace Shin is part of “Inside Story,” The Marshall Project’s groundbreaking video series distributed online and in correctional facilities across the U.S.

Watch the latest season, with new episodes landing every Thursday at 11 a.m. ET on The Marshall Project’s website and YouTube channel. Episodes can also be watched on the Scripps News network on Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT.

Our reporting has real impact on the criminal justice system

View All Impact Arrow
An illustration shows, from left, an elephant symbolizing Republicans; simplified figures including a person stepping out with vertical bars to their right, crossed by wavy lines suggesting a flag; a woman holding a sign; a donkey symbolizing Democrats; a ballot box; and hints of barbed wire on either side of the drawing. The color scheme of the drawing is in marigold yellow, coral, blue, black and light gray.
Through Investigate This!, we helped at least 20 different outlets publish a different kind of election story — one that featured the political views of incarcerated people.
An aerial view of the U.S. penitentiary in Thomson, Illinois.
Our investigation into rampant violence prompted the shutdown of the Special Management Unit at Thomson prison in Illinois, and a decision six months later to convert Thomson to a minimum security prison.
Crishala Reed wrote on a jury questionnaire that she supports Black Lives Matter. She was soon removed from the jury pool
The Marshall Project’s 2020 story of a woman who was struck from a jury pool helped advocates push for a bill to discourage juror discrimination.

Our journalism establishes facts, exposes failures and examines solutions for a criminal justice system in crisis. If you believe in what we do, become a member today.

Donate

Stay up to date on our reporting and analysis.

Tags: →Corrections Officers →County Jails →Racism →Connecticut →Hartford, Connecticut →Life Inside →Inside Story →Animation
About
People
Jobs
Sitemap
Funders